The Master Huntsman
by Phonius Pwnage the 3rd
Summary: Morito Hayama was a man known by many names; from the notorious "Little Boy" to the "Demon Drill Sergeant from Hell" to the "Master Rank of Mikado High." But there was one name Morito never thought he'd be called and that was Jaune Arc.
1. Mikado High Vs Child Room

**Greetings everyone! Due to various people asking for it, I've decided to bring back Gun X Clover, for real this time. I'll still continue with Scattered Petals but this will take a more direct approach with the crossover of Gun X Clover. It was REALLY difficult trying to create this prologue but hopefully it fulfills it's role in getting you guys to read it. Also another Author's Note is at the bottom, make sure to read it. Now then onwards to the story!**

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Chapter One

This was it. This was the moment they had been waiting for. The final battle between the notorious terrorist group, Child Room, and the students and faculty of Mikado High school. It had been a grueling journey between the two groups but at last it almost over. As the members of Mikado High set up camp beyond the borders of their target, Morito Hayama, the defacto leader of the rebellion, walked throughout the camp, taking notice of the various injured students and the faculty that rushed to complete their tasks. As Morito walked through the camp, his black body armor covering most of his body except his head, the sounds of rustling children and cries were all that he could hear.

Walking past the makeshift shooting range, Morito watched as several students were being trained by his very own protege; the battlefied sellsword of Mikado High, Sabine Hammershmidt; a master of range warfare with the ability to see fifteen seconds into the future through the use of her uncovered right eye. She seemed to yelling at the students in a drill sergeant-like fashion. "You little maggots haven't hit a single target!" she yelled. Morito smiled at the woman before walking off further into the camp.

Along the way, Morito took notice of the medic's tent. Flipping open the flaps, Morito saw another one of his proteges at work; Toura, otherwise known as the black panther of Mikado High; a former protege of Morito's own former protege, Salim. Toura is proficient in E.S.L, a technique taught to her by Salim, who just so happened to have learned it from Morito, himself. Today, Toura was working as the group's main combat medic.

Seeing no problems, Morito left without much word and walked towards an ongoing match between three women; the Saiga Sisters, Hibana and Mizuki, and his oldest protege, Eleanor, the ice empress of Mikado High. It seemed like Eleanor was teaching the girls about the art of swordplay. This proved diffuclt for Hibana as she more of a heavy weapons specialist while Mizuki showed course the match ended with the winner being Elenear. The girls, while disappointed were brought back to normal as Eleanor smiled softly at them before explaining as to why they had lost.

Once more, Morito smiled at the interaction before continuing his walk. Throughout the camp the rustling children trained and trained in preparation for their final assault. The Hamelins were in the command tent planning the assault, the other master ranks were training the various children. But still Morito walked.

He walked and walked and walked, through the camp of would-be-mercenaries, people with strange almost mystical powers, and the men and women would at one time were his enemies but now his allies. Morito amost couldn't believe at just how far they had all come. But none had impressed him more than Kotonoha Nanase, a girl with an ungodly power known as Language Grave, an ability that serves as a figurative cemetery for various Dead languages. Through the use of these Dead Languages, one could create living golems, prevent death, or even annihilate a small city. And through the trauma of having to deal with the immense power she held in her hands, Kotonoha created six different personalities to help cope; Futaba, whom represents Kotonoha's distrust in others. Mitsuba, whom represents her rage abainst those that attack her. Yotsuba, whom represents her interlect that she's had to use to combat against those after her. Itsuba, whom represents Kotonoha's "masculinity" and her wish for a more easygoing life. Mutsuha, whom represents her desire for rest from the hardships she's had to endure. And finally, Nanoha, her most dangerous personality, the personality that represents the collection of Language Grave itself.

Morito walked far past the camp and up the hill that had a view of the horizon and there was Kotonoha. She wore her own version of Morito's combat armor, her hair tied back into a ponytail as she looked over the horizon. And so Morito stood next to her, neither speaking only to watch the sunset. Kotonoha turned to look at Morito, who in turn, looked back. They smiled at one another before Kotonoha walked back towards camp at the sound of the dinner bell being rung, leaving Morito alone atop of the hill.

Just across the plains lied the headquarters of the Child Room, a notorious terrorist group that utilized children, orphaned by the terrors of war and using a combination of brainwashing and stolen dead languages, turned them into child soldier who would die for the cause they were trained to believe in. At one point in his life, Morito had taken down the organization and had thought that that was the end of it but much like everything else this peace wouldn't last forever. The organization was soon brought back to fruition with a new leader and new way of thinking. This leader of Morito's own master, Sayuri Hibachi, the woman who seemingly adopted him and trained him in the ways of combat. Morito had always hoped that he could persuade his former master off the path she'd chosen for herself but after awhile Morito began to realize that his master only had one true goal, to create the perfect soldier by any means necessary, even if it costed her own life.

Motito stared across the plains, his head filled with memories of his time with his master, of his time as a teacher to his proteges, of his time at Mikado High school. But before Morito could continue his trip down memory lane, the sound of a girl giggling brought caught his attention and there standing in front of him was a little girl dressed in a schoolgirl's uniform. Swiftly, Morito pulled his five seven pistol out of its holster, keeping it trained on the little girl. "Hey there kiddo. Did ya miss me?" she asked, smiling at him despite the gun in her face.

"Master." said Morito. "What are you doing here?" he asked.

Sayuri merely smiled at her former protege, "Oh come on kiddo, can a girl pay a visit to her most favorite student?" she jokingly asked.

"You lost that right a long time ago, Master." said Morito, keeping his gun trained on her.

"Oh Morito, how you wound me so." said Sayuir, holding her left breast right over her heart, dramatically.

"Why are you here, Master?" he demanded this time.

Seeing no point in continuing her teasing, Sayuri stood before walking just past Morito and looking over the camp. "They can't win. You know that, don't you?" she asked.

"I believe they can. I have hope." he said.

"Hope will only ever take you so far. You know that better than anyone." she stated, knowing of Morito's true past.

"Hope is what keeps us strong. Hope is what makes us continue onwards through the darkness." said Morito.

"You're outgunned, outmanned, and out of ideas. Your best bet is to go for an all out assault. No doubt the Hamelins are planning the assault while you and the others flank from the sides. A classic approach but one that will almost certainly lead to the downfall of Mikado High. Not to mention you'll be dealing with my little kiddies. So tell me, Morito, do you believe your kids can win this war?" she asked, smirking at her former student.

"No. even if we were at our best we'd never win. It took most of us master ranks several years and sacrifices to last a lifetime to ever make a dent in the organization and that was before they had access to the Dead Languages." said Morito, sighing as he holstered his weapon.

"Then what will you do? I know you're too stubborn to give up but I also know you'd never willingly sacrifice your allies, at least, not a second time. So, what will you do?" Sayuri asked.

"I don't know." said Morito.

"Hmm, well you always think of something to surprise me. I'm sure you'll do it again." said Sayuri as she opened a portal back to headquarters, leaving Morito alone atop of the hill.

It would be hours later that the members of Mikado High began to mobilize, their squads lining up at the edge of the compound and at the forefront was Morito Hayama, dressed in his combat armor. To his sides were his four proteges, the Hamelins, and several other master ranks. Morito looked over the small army they had as he opened his mouth to speak; "Today is the day we make history!" His words were quickly followed by a roar of shouts. "You have gone through hell and high water and sacrificed your daily lives as children to enter the world of mercenaries! You have each made decisions in this life that will forever haunt you, but will this stop you from doing what is right!?" he shouted.

"NO!" they shouted back.

"This morons of the Child Room have us outgunned, outmanned, and we're shit out of luck. Are you excited!?" he shouted.

"YES!" they replied.

"When we march upon that compound they will hit us with everything they've got! It won't be training dummys you maggots will have to worry about! Stick with your assigned squads! Accomplish your obectives! And by all means...KICK SOME ASS!" Morito shouted.

The roars of the small army rang through the skies they raced towards the compound, its emergency lights blarring as millions of soldiers assumed positions. Turret fire rained down upon them only to be shot out of the skies by Sabine and her squadron, her right eye was a glow as she wielded two anti-tank rifles akimbo style. The men that faced them were swiftly dispacthed by Eleanor and Mizuki, both using cutlasses as Hibana and the others mowed them down with gatling guns. Diago, using his masculine form, stampeded through the army, tearing apart soldier after soldier in his way.

Morito and Crow using the two dead languages given to them by Nanoha were racing through the army, literally obliterating them from the sheer G forces they created. Kotonoha in her Futaba personality was utilizing two desert eagles to dispatch grunt after grunt. Hamelins were firing round after round from their personalized death machine as their daughters, Giselle and Myrta laid waste to the surrounding enemies.

The army moved ever so closer to the compound, as more and more enemies raced towards them. From undead soldiers to living rock golems to the very child soldiers they were here to rescue. It was almost too much for them but still they moved forward carving down more and more enemies. Blood coating the once luscious green plains beneath their feet.

The army of Mikad High approached the compound, entering its boundaries before splitting off to complete their objectives. The main strech soon became an all out firefight and racing through the middle was Morito and his squad; consisting of Kotonoha and the Saiga Sisters. Their objective was to shut down the main compund via the master controls which was in the main control room in the head's office, while simulteanously rescuing the kidnapped children and taking them away safely.

The squad upon entering the main compound was welcomed with automated turret fire and living golems. The group reacted fast, taking out eaach target with swiftness and force. Soon the atrium was clear of hostiles. "Ammo check." commanded Morito.

"2500 rounds left." spoke Hibana, checking her miniature gatling gun.

"13 rounds left." said Mizuki, her submachine gun in need of ammunition.

"12 rounds. Each." said Futaba.

"25 rounds. Just enough for some heavy duties." said Morito. "You each know your side objectives."

"You and I will make our way towards the master controls in order to shut down compound's autmated traps while the Saiga Sisters stage a rescue operation of the captured children. Afterwards we'll retreat to the extraction zone." stated Futaba.

"Good. You heard the lady. Let's get a move on." commanded Morito as they each went off in seperate directions.

Morito and Futaba traversed the compound's hallways always making sure to silence any oncoming attacker in their way. Morito using his assault rifle took down soldier after soldier always making sure to shoot the symbol on their chest, this would halt their regenerative abilities and enable them to be killed once more. Futaba using her natural agility was able to combat against them. The two fought throughout the compound until they happened upon a doorway. This was their objective.

Opening the door, the two found themselves in the master control room and sitting in a chair much too large for her was Sayuri, Morito's former master. She smiled at the two of them, "Well well. If I knew we'd be having visitors I would've prepared some snacks. Maybe some nice brownies or some crumbcakes." she joked.

"It's over Sayuri. Hand over the controls and you just might live to hear your court order." demanded Futaba.

Of course, this did little to terrify Sayuri, who merely giggled at Futaba's demand. "My my kiddo, to think you'd find another protege and with such brass, I might add. I must say you impress me little girl." said Sayuri.

Futaba merely snarled at her, keeping her weapons trained on her."I won't ask you again. Relinquish the controls. Now." she demanded.

"Hmm. No." said Sayuri, leaping out of her chair and attacking the two.

Using her stolent dead languages, Sayuri used her fourth dimension hands, summoning weapon after weapon to combat the two. Futaba, using her own dead languages and skill was able to fight almost on par with the miniature girl, while Morito used every opprotunity to attack her. The three continued their fight as Sayuri grasped Morito's hand, twirling him around and throwing him into the bulletproof glass, creating a very large crack from the sheer force. But still Morito got up and rejoined the fighting.

Outside the army of Mikado High was slowly being overwhelmed by the various enemies. And while the master ranks where able to vanquish them, they could not do so and keep the children safe. Soon an explosion caught everyone's attention and looking up they saw a large billow of smoke raise to the sky from the master control room. And leaping through the smoke was Morito and Futaba, quickly followed by Sayuri.

"Where you going kiddo!? Ain't got time to play with your master!?" shouted Sayuri, firing at them with her collection of weapons.

The two continued running from the crazed little girl, leaping from building to building as she chased after them. "Futaba! Inititiate Alpha-Delta-Upsilon-15!" shouted Morito.

Futaba simply nodded her reply as she created 5 clones of her personalities. Now it had became 7 against 1. Sayuri merely smiled at the group, "Oh, what's this? Seven of you against one little ole me? I must say that's highly unfair. This just means I'll more graves to dig." said Sayuri attacking them.

After a few moments, Sayuri, using another stolen dead language released an energy pulse, sending the clones back and destroying them in the process and sending Morito into the wall, creating a crator. The two mercenaries were forced to lay on the ground as the little monster walked over to Morito, leaning down towards his face. "Like I said before kiddo. It's over. Look at them all. All that hope means nothing when they're dead." said Sayuri as she summoned several blades before sending the down on his limbs, keeping him trapped.

"Morito! You bitch!" shouted Futaba as she began to charge at her only to be stopped as the concrete around came to life, ensnaring her wrists and feet and bringing her down to a kneeling posistion.

"Oh, you're still alive? I must say little girl you just continue to impress me time and time again." said Sayuri, walking over to her. "So you must be little miss clover, huh?" she asked, already knowing the answer.

This halted any words Futaba might've said.

"I wonder what it must've felt like after that day?" asked Sayuri.

The memories of the day came rushing back to Kotonoha, bringing her out of Futaba and changing the symbol on her chest from a two to a one.

"Stop." demanded Morito, his wounds already reaching their limit as he became too weak to get up.

"How did it feel obliterating those people? Hundreds of families gone in the blink of an eye. All because of you." said Sayuri, smiling down as tears welled up in Kotonoha's eyes.

"Stop it." Morito demanded once again, struggling to get up. But Sayuri showed no signs of stopping.

"And to think none of this would've happened if it wasn't for you." said Sayuri, causing Kotonoha to look up at her, her eyes filled with tears.

"W-What?" she stuttered.

"That's right. I mean think about it. If you weren't born then those people would still be alive. Morito wouldn't be so close to death and all of those children of Mikado High would still be enjoying their school life. So in a way, all of this, is because of you." said Sayuri, releasing her hold over her as Kotonoha slumped into herself, eyes red from crying.

"STOP IT! Do not blame Kotonoha for the attrocities YOU committed!" shouted Morito.

"Oh, Morito. Still the same naive little boy I found all those years ago. You and I both know I'm right. If little miss clover had never been around then none of this would be happening. You might've been able to retire to the remote island you always talked about. Or maybe you might've become a teacher at Mikado High, training those children to become the next great mercenary. But instead here you are and all because of her." said Sayuri, turning away from Morito and facing Kotonoha.

"You're right." said Kotonoha

Needless to say, Morito found himself shocked by this. After all they had gone through, how could Kotonoha say that?

"Hmm, smart girl. I-" Sayuri started only to be cut off.

"But you're also wrong. You're right in that if I had never been born then those people would still be alive. Morito would be living happily with the others. And the world wouldn't have become a battlefield. But I can't change what's already happened, even my Language Grave has it's limitations. I can't bring those people back but I can remember them. I can remember to always hold my friends close. To remember the good times and learn from the bad. My past may have made me who I am but I'm not doomed to remain that way forever. Morito taught me that its not our past that defines us but of the future we dream for ourselves. So, I'll continue to fight back, I'll fight until my knuckles bleed and when I'm at Death's door, I'll keep fighting. I'll keep fighting because I'm a student of Mikado High and I'll be damned if I let some snot-nosed little bitch tell me what's what!" shouted Kotonoha, activating her Language Grave as she glared at Sayuri., whom merely smiled once more before activating her various dead languages. "Alright little girl, let's see just how strong your resolve really is." And as the two godly titans attacked one another, taking off into the sky, this left only Morito atop of the building as the two women fought amongst the clouds.

After struggling some more and losing plently of blood, Morito was able to release himself from his bondage and stand up. His hands and legs bleeding profusively as he limped back to the master control room. Once there Morito slumped against the metal doorway, making sure to lock it down before doing so. His communicator blared to life as Mizuki shouted in his ear, "Morito! Are you alright!? We saw the smoke and then we saw Kotonoha flying and-"

"Did you rescue the kids, Mizuki?" he asked.

"Yeah, but Morito are you okay?" asked Mizuki.

Morito, pulling his hand away from his side, revealing a bloodied hand sighed softly before replying, "Yeah. I'm alright. Notify the other sqaud leaders about the children. The Hamelins should be there to help transport them." he commanded.

"What about you and Kotonoha?" she asked.

"I'll make sure she's there. Just get those kids out of here." said Morito, pressing against his wound.

"Alright. I'll let them know and Morito?" asked Mizuki.

"Yeah?" he asked back.

"Thank you. For everything." said Mizuki, ending their call.

"Heh, stupid kid. Bout to make a grown man cry." said Morito before switching his comm to broadcast, making sure that everyone could hear him. "To all surviving members of Mikado High, retreat to the extraction zone immediately. I repeat, retreat to the extraction zone."

Elsewhere Kotonoha in her godly state was combating against Sayuri, who had her own version of the godly state. But utilizing their own dead languages to combat against one another; from Kotonoha creating gigantic stone golems to Sayuri creating a massive firestorm, turning the giant to ash. "You can't keep this up forever little girl!" Sayuri shouted. "Everyone has their limits!"

But instead of answering back, Kotonoha continued her assault against the little girl. But deep down she knew she was right, while her language grave was indeed powerful there was only so much it could do and how long it could stay active and this was pushing her limits to their breaking points but each time she thought about giving up she'd look down and see all her friends and allies continuing to fight against insurmountable odds, which only served to boost her determination. And so she fought back. She fought and fought and fought until she was finally able to send the two of them crashing into the ground, both heavily exhausted from the use of multiple dead languages and the overall wounds they seemed to gain. Though there were some dead languages that could heal them this too would serve to exhaust them even more so. And so there they were, two godly beings standing within a massive crater as their allies fought against each other.

"Why? Why are you still fighting?" Sayuri demanded.

"For the same reason my friends continue to fight right now. I fight because it's the right thing to do." stated Kotonoha.

"The right thing? Look around you! Everything wrong with this world has been because someone thought they were doing the right thing!" she shouted. "Those children had no purpose in this world after becoming orphans! I gave them a purpose! I gave them meaning!"

"You turned those children into mindless drones. No better than soldier ants risking their lives to protect their queen." said Kotonoha.

"And what of those children of Mikado High? What of them? Are they not mindless drones? Child soldiers? Tell me just what is the difference between them and us!" Sayuri demanded.

"At Mikado High they don't force you to become a soldier. They don't break you down to build you up the way they desire. We are taught right from wrong. We learn from the lessons taught to us by those more expierenced. We make friends, memories, and dreams of a better tomorrow. But we're never forced to become mercenaries." said Kotonoha.

"And what are mercenaries then!? They are nothing but trigger-happy gluttons who's only desires are fame and fortune! Is that what Mikado High is about!?" she shouted.

"No, Mikado High is more than a training ground for future mercenaries." stated Eleanor stepping to the edge of the crator.

"It's a home. Where we learn, laugh, and love." said Diago, back in his womanly form.

"It's where those who strayed from their rightful path can find the light." said Toura.

"It's where you face hell each and everyday to protect those around you." said Sabine.

"It's where you can truly discover just what your purpose is." said Giselle, joining them.

"It's where you can be who you really are without fear." said Crow.

"It's where those who are lost can be found." said Ann, her butler right behind her, pushing her wheelchair along. And as more and more of the students and faculty of Mikado High joined the others, surrounding the two girls, Sayuri's eyes widened in shock. What had happened to her army? What had become of them? It wasn't until she looked down that she took notice that several of her various dead languages with mysterious gone. "You were right when you said I couldn't keep it up forever. But unfortunately it wasn't you I was trying to out last. It was your army." stated Kotonoha.

"W-What?" she stuttered as Kotonoha walked over to her, a blade materializing in her hand as she loomed over the now terrified girl.

"Like you said before; "everyone has their limits." even you." said Kotonoha before plunging the blade deep into her chest, ending her life. But not before Sayuri uttered one more sentence, "You may have beaten me but another will just take my place."

"Then we'll fight them as well. We won't stop fighting until this world is a safer place. Where children won't have fear of war and famine. I swear it on my life." said Kotonoha, her eyes filled with determination.

Sayuri forced out a laugh, blood spurting out of her mouth in doing so, "Heh, you're just like him. Always saying that there could be peace in this fucked up world. But as long as humanity exists then there will always be war. When you see that little kiddo, tell him...tell him that I'm sorry. I'm sorry that couldn't have been the person he wanted me to be. But that I'll alway remember the time we spent together." Sayuri pleaded, her eyes filling with tears as her eyelids slowly began to fall.

"I hate you for what you did to him but I can't help but thank you for it as well. What you did is unforgivable but it's because of it that Morito became the man he is today. So, I'll tell him your final words. As a thank you from him." she promised, before turning away from the corpse of Sayuri, her lips widened to a smile as she passed away.

And as Kotonoha turned to face her allies a resounding roar rushed through the massive crowd. They had done it. They had finally won. It was tough and it was torturous but now it was finally over. But as Kotonoha was being congratulated by her friends she was suddenly reminded of Morito. Her eyes widened before she began pushing her way through the crowd, racing towards the compound to find him. Soon she was joined by the Saiga Sister's, Giselle and Myrta, Sabine, Eleanor, Diago, and Toura as they all ran towards Morito but as Kotonoha opened the door to the main control room, they're mouths opened in shock. There, lying on the floor with a melancholy-like smile on his face was Morito. His armor was gone and in it's place was his black tank top, darkened by dried blood.

Kotonoha rushed to his side, wrapping her arms around him, cradling him in her arms. "No. No. Please, no. M-Morito. Please. Y-You can't die. You promised. You promised you'd make me happy. How can I do that without you? Damn it. Damn it. DAMN IT!" Kotonoha continued to shout to the heavens, damning the world for taking him away from her. This wasn't like last time when she'd saved him from death, at that time he was still hanging by a thread and because of her battle against Sayuri her language grave was useless now. And so all she could do now was scream and cry as the world took yet another soul for it's collection.

It wouldn't be until hourse later that Morito would get a proper burial. He had once stated that he wanted his grave to be place right beside his late wife. And so his friends honored his last request, placing right beside his wife in the burial ground of their first home.

The faculty eventually held a sermon for Morito. Each of his proteges came up and gave their speech of how Morito had changed their lives and that life would never be the same without him. The Hamelins came up and told the story of Morito had set the two of them up. More and more came up and spoke highly of Morito and the moments they all shared. Finally, it was Kotonoha's turn and as she took her steps up the stage, her memories of Morito came back to her; from the moment they met to the date they shared to the moment she'd lost him. She took her place at the podium and took a deep breath, "Today, we honor Morito Hayama. A mercenary. A teahcer. A father. A friend. A...A true love. Morito gave his life for what he believed was right. I have no doubt in my mind that he'd do so again if granted another chance. Morito knew the risks he was facing and still chosed to stand beside us. I...I...I miss him. I miss him so much... Morito had taught me about the right and wrongs of the world. He taught me that wasn't my past that defined me but of the future I dreamed for myself. Morito was my first true love. I loved him with all my heart and though it pains me to have him taken away from me, I'm remided a simply phrase he'd always say, "I'm not a lolicon."." she and the others all laughed at this. She breathed once more before continuing, "We can't change the past. But we can change the future. And I'll make sure that future is a future where children won't live in fear anymore. And that I can only hope that Morito is at peace in whatever afterlife there might be."

Elsewhere in a small hospital in the town of Arcadia, a woman with rainbow-colored hair and crystal eyes was struggling on her bed, surrounded by various doctors and nurses while her husband, a behemoth of a man with blonde hair and blue eyes held her hand, though "held" is loosely defined as the wife was crushing the massive hand in her otherwise tiny grip. The man had a look of pain on his face but continued to say words of encouragement. "Damn you Orville! If I have to suffer through this one more time I will personally rip your manhood off and use it as a hood ornatment!" the woman shouted, struggling with her pregnancy.

Orville felt a sweat drop at his wife's choice of words; "N-Now, now, Iris. Let's be calm about this. You always said you wanted a little boy to spoil right?" Oville pleaded.

"Ok, Mrs. Arc, One more big push!" the doctor commanded.

And so Iris pushed with all her might and soon the doctor pulled out a crying baby boy. "Congrats Mrs. Arc. It's a bouncing baby boy." said the doctor, handing the baby to her. Iris held her newborn baby boy close to her. Orville put his arm around his wife, holding her close as she held their baby boy. "Have you've thought of a name?" asked Orville.

"Yes, I have. Welcome to the world, Jaune Arc." introduced Iris.

Meanwhile in the mindscape of little Jaune Arc..."WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK!?" shouted Mikado High's very own Morito Hayama.

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 **Greetings everyone! Thank you for reading the hopefully amazing prologue of Gun X RWBY: The Master Huntsman. I've placed a little tidbit of information here at the end in hopes on answering any upcoming questions you might have.**

 **1\. I've decided that I would merge Morito Hayama and Jaune Arc half way through writing this chapter. It came to me when I realized I had no clue as to how I would transport Morito to Remnant. And unlike Scattered Petals, where I decided to leave it up to mystery I knew I couldn't do the same here. Plus, I merged the two characters because I always wondered what would happen if Jaune was actually a full fledge huntsman and was merely infiltrating Beacon Academy.**

 **2\. I am extremely bad at writing beginnings unless given a good template to use. So this prologue/first chapter was really tough to write on top of doing it before the deadline.**

 **3\. I've decided that I'm going to continue writing for both stories; Scattered Petals & Gun X RWBY. I'll be releasing both stories new chapters alongside each other every Sunday, unless otherwise specified. **

**4\. I hope you all had a Happy New Years and here's to a hopefully amazing 2018!**


	2. The Start To A New Life

**Greetings everyone! It's Phony here and I've decided a rewrite was in order after an important fact was pointed out to me by "Anonymous Guest" about the drastic age difference between Jaune and his sisters. So I've changed it. This is why I love reviews because the not only tell me how much you guys are enjoying the story but they also point out any faults I missed during proofreading. So thank you all for following and favoriting and reviewing and I hope you continue to read this hopefully amazing story! Till next time, this has been PhonyPWN3!**

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Chapter Two

Of all the things Morito had thought would happen after his death THIS was not one of them. There he was being held by a grown woman with rainbow hair and crystal clear eyes while a mountain of a man with blonde hair and beard to match and ocean blue eyes smiled down at him. And what had they called him? Jaune? Was he french or something? No, no, he couldn't be french; the man and woman, who he guessed were his parents which was a no brainer, spoke english. Or at least maybe they were speaking their native language and he just automatically understood it? As Morito felt himself being lifted from his mother's arms, a fact that he will most likely never get used to, he was handed into the muscular arms of his father, another fact he'd never get used to.

And as the man held him, smiling as if he'd just found the meaning to life itself, his mouth opened to speak; "Hello there son. I'm your father." said the man.

 _"No shit sherlock."_ thought Morito.

The woman smiled at her husband, holding his newborn son. "Orville hand him over and get the girls. I just known they'll be breaking down the doors to see their baby brother at any moment" said the woman before reaching out to get her son.

"Of course dear. Here you go sonny, here's your mother." said Orvile, handing his wife their son before walking out to get their other children.

The woman smiled down at her baby boy, small tears of happiness spilling out of the corners of her eyes. "My precious baby boy. My little Jaune."

It was needless to say that Morito was confused as all living hell. Just what had happened to him? Did he really die or was this all an illusion created by his master? Was he in a coma was just dreaming all of this? No, there had to be a logic- you know what never mind. After spending all his years fighting against supernatural beings ranging from users who could shapeshift to those that could alter the very face of reality it was pretty much pointless trying to use logic. but there had to be some explaination to his current situation. But until he could figure that out it was best just make the best out of weird situation. And just as Morito had thought that the door to the hospital room slammed open as several girls clambered in. The woman giggled as she held her little boy for her children to see.

And as Morito looked over the multiple colored heads of seven girls a thought occured to him; he was the little brother to SIX older sisters. And after spending time with a variety of females Morito came to find that many of them fell under a certain category based on their personality.

Morito's new mother smiled at him before looking at her daughters; "Girls meet your baby brother, Jaune. Jaune these are you sisters. Orville, sweetie, introduce our darling little angels." said the mother.

This made Orville beam with pride as he ushered the oldest twins forward.

Both girls stood at eaxctly the same height, each with their shade of vibrant green eyes. And by the looks of things the girls appeared to be fraternal twins, most likely around 13 years old. Though this was their only similarities.

It was their overall differences that drew Morito's attention.

To the left side of Orville, stood a girl with luscious red hair, it's very length reaching the girl's lower back. She wore a red shirt with little frills along the bottom and a black skirt over red leggings and white slip-on shoes.

To the right side of Orville was a girl with short and choppy orange hair. She wore what looked to be a sport jersey two sizes too big for her and a pair of blue sport spandex, with a set of white running shoes.

"Jaune, these are your oldest sisters, Rouge and Clementine. Rouge's dream is to be Vale's next great fashion designer and Clementine is the captain and ace of her junior Dustball team." said Orville, pushing the girls towards their younger brother.

Rouge, seizing an opprotunity, stepped forward first, proudly swinging her red hair over her shoulder before placing her small, almost pure white hand over her chest. "Hello little brother. It is I, your oldest and most beloved sister, Rouge."

The other girl, not wanting her twin to hog the attention of her new little brother, shoved her out of the way before taking her stand in front of Morito/Jaune with her arms crossed over her chest. "Hey little bro'. I'm Clementine but you can call me Clem." said Clementine as she leaned close to Morito/Jaune's ear, whispering, but not, into his ear. "And don't listen to Rouge, she only older by like two seconds."

"It was three seconds!" shouted Rouge.

"Nuh uh!" shouted back Clementine.

"Yeah huh!" shouted back, back Rouge.

Seeing an argument starting to form, Iris nodded to her husband, who quickly ushered the girls back outside, where they could be watched by their friends.

Afterwards, Orville brought up the next set of fraternal twin girls to the little brother. Once again, the girls seemed to share the same height, eye color, which was a light shade of brown, and age, that being 11 years old. But once again, it was differences that drew his attention.

The right was a girl with wild, frizzy, green hair, wear a dark, forest green sweater, three sizes too big under a bright white lab coat, which was held closed with a single button. Covering her eyes was a pair of small square glasses, most likely for nearsightedness.

To the left was a little girl with short light blonde hair, reaching just above her shoulders, which was covered by a small sunhat. she wore a soft yellow and cream white sundress and pair of tan sandles. She had this aura of a mother, similar to Iris.

"Girls, this is your little brother, Jaune. Jaune, these are your older sisters, Verde and Chiffon. Verde is the smartest girl in her whole class and Chiffon dreams of being a mother, just like me." introduced Iris.

At the sight of her mother's head nod, Verde stepped forward, holding her arms behind her back, the sleeves of her green sweater extending past the sleeves of the lab coat. "Greetings infantile male family unit, J-272, designation "Jaune Arc". My name is Verde and this is my fraternal twin sister, Chiffon." said Verde, waving her arm toward Chiffon, who chose to hide behind her sunhat.

Iris smiled at her two little girls before Verde grabbing Chiffon's hand and leading her out of the room.

The next girls to step up were another set of fraternal twin sisters. Their similarities were their bright yellow eyes, height, and age, that being 8 years old.

To the left was a girl with vibrant, spikey neon blue hair, covered by a set of maroon red headphones, which connected to small music player kept in the girl's blue jeans. She wore a small white and blue hooded jacket.

To the right stood a girl with straight, dark purple hair with black streaks. She wore a dark purple skirt with black leggings and purple dance shoes. In her arms was a blue bunny doll with a pink bow and black sewn in buttons for eyes.

Girls, this is Jaune, your little brother. Jaune, these are your older sisters, Jazz and Violet. Jazz dreams of being a muscian and Violet wants to be a dancer."

"Hey there lil' dude. Name's Jazz and this lil' silent but deadly girl is my fraternal twin, Violet. Don't let the emotionless look fool ya. Girl's got the appetite of a goliath for sweets like chocolate." said Jazz, whincing as her twin, Violet, smacked her arm, causing a fight between the two.

After the girls were ushered out by their father, leaving only the three of them, a knock on the door caught their attention. Opening the door revealed a young nurse with black, styled hair and in her arms was a little bundle of joy wrapped in a red fluffly blanket.

After handing the little baby to Orville, who held the baby close to his massive chest, the mountain of a man walked over to his wife and newborn son, holding the baby out for both to see. Unlike the other sisters, who each had their similarities, this sister had one crucial difference. Attached to her silver gray hair was two fox ears.

 _"What the hell?"_ thought Morito.

The nurse, still holding little Chrome, handed the little girl over to Orville, who after taking the girl held her up for his son to see.

"This is your other big sister, Chrome, though she's only a month older than you. We adopted her after finding her cradle behind a dumpster. Listen son, I know she looks diferent in comparison to your other sisters but I promise she's the sweetest little girl and I just know the two of you will be as close as thieves." said Orville, smiling at his wife.

"And that's the whole family from start to finish, my little Jaune. They may be weird and they may drive you insane. But at the end of the day, they're your family and they'll always be there for you." said Iris, smiling down at her little boy.

Meanwhile inside the mind of little Jaune Arc, Morito felt himself smiling a bit. Sure as far as he knew he was in the body of an infant with no knowledge of how the world worked or if any of this was even real to begin with. But he had a feeling that even if he never found out how he came to be here, he was happy that he had a group of reliable people to call upon.

And as Iris held her baby boy in her arms a soft knock at the door drew their attention. Orville, seeing the head nod from his wife, swung open the door to see the smiling face of his old friend, Ozpin. The man was dressed in his classic black suit and green neck scarf, his brown eyes just barely being covered by his round glasses, his cane held by his left hand and in his right was his "never unfilled" coffee mug and standing behind him was Glynda Goodwitch, dressed in her black corrset and white dress shirt, her emerald green eyes covered by her oval glasses, while her purple cape flowed behind her.

"Ozpin! Glynda! You finally made it. I was beginning to worry." said Orville, stepping to the side as the two walked in.

"My apologies, Orville. Things have been quite hectic trying to settle into my new position." said Ozpin, smiling at Orville.

"Ah, so you've been making poor Glynda do most of the work, huh." said Orville, smirking at Ozpin, who simply hid his growing smile with his coffee mug.

While the two men were busy catching up, Glynda and Iris were attempting to chat but where continously interrupted by the multiple girls, who were all trying to get Glynda's attention. And while Iris was softly laughing at the torment her friend was going through, Glynda had had just about enough. So in an effort to save her girls from Glynda's wrath, Iris gathered her girls' attention. "Girls, I think Jaune is in need of a nap."

Rouge, nodding her head, answered back "Of course dear mother. Come along, everyone, let's go back home."

And even as the girls all awed in disappointment, Rouge still managed to herd the others out the door, leaving the adults in the room with Jaune.

Sighing in relief, Glynda turned to her friend, before pinching the bridge of her nose. "Thank you, Iris. Any longer and your girls would've become wall decorations."

"Still not used to children yet, Glyn?" asked Orville.

"Children, I can handle. YOUR girls are the bane of my existence." said Glynda, glaring at Orville, who merely gave a hearty laugh.

Meanwhile, Ozpin walked over to Iris, who was currently holding little Jaune. "So, this is your newborn."

"That's correct. Ozpin, Glynda, I'd like to introduce you to my son, Jaune Arc." said Orville, taking his son from Iris, before handing him to Ozpin, who held the infant in his arms.

"He's quite the dashing little boy, isn't he?" asked Ozpin, smiling as Orville patted his right shoulder.

"Of course he is! He's an Arc and the Arcs have always been known for their good looks." said, a very smug, Orville.

"Oh? Strange, I could've sworn you told me the Arcs were known for their intelligence. After all, I still remember your "brilliant" plan to prank Miss Goodwtich." said Ozpin, smirking as Orville's smug face was diminished.

Seeing their opprotunity for some old fashioned teasing, the two women coined in.

"I was told the Arcs were known for their combat prowess. That was quickly diminished in all of our spars." said Glynda, her arms crossed.

"I remember being told the Arcs were known for their abiltiy to gain the affection of any female they set their eyes on. But who was it that was constantly thrown out of the girl's dorm for waking them up with newly written love letters?" asked Iris, smiling at the defeated look of her husband. For all of his praises, Orville certainly had his faults and one of them was pride, something of which Iris enjoyed knocking down when he needed it.

Meanwhile, Morito was busy creating his plan for the future. Once he had full control of his motor skills he'd need to begin training if he was to get back to his orignal level of strength. That in and of itself would take up most of his time while the rest would be spent learning everything he could about this world. And from the looks of things, the rest of his time here would be quite the adventure.


	3. Dr Doyle's Child Care

**Greetings everyone! Here's chapter 3 of Gun X RWBY! Hope you all enjoy!**

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Chapter Three

Six months.

Six fucking months Morito was trapped in the body of an infant, with no motor skills or ability to form words.

And the fact that he was, at most, a toddler came with it's own problems. This in the form of a doting mother, who insisted on breastfeeding her little boy.

Now this most likely wouldn't bother some people but considering Morito was a grown 40 year old man in the body of an infante boy caused considerable amounts of awkwardness.

This, of course, created it's own problem when Iris and Orville became worried about their little boy's lack of desire to suckle on his mother's breasts.

So in order to hopefully solve this problem, Iris brought her baby to the leading child psychiatrist in the city of Vale.

As the two of them walked into the building, a sign above them reading "Dr. Doyle's Child Care", the main waiting room nearly empty, save for one couple, a man with short blonde hair and blue eyes and a woman with black and red hair and silver eyes. Beneath the woman was a purple stroller and inside was a little girl with lilac eyes and blonde hair the reaching the girl's shoulders.

It was obvious that Iris knew who the couple was when a smile was brought to her face and she began to push the stroller towards them.

"Summer! Tai! I haven't seen you two since Beacon! How have you been?" asked Iris.

The woman, Summer, turned towards her with a smile on her face, her arms reaching for Iris and pulling her into a hug. While the man, Tai, stood back holding the stroller in place as the two women hugged.

"We've been great! What about you? How's the girls?" asked Summer.

"They're a rowdy group of little girls but I can't imagine a life without them. As for me, well..." said Iris, gesturing towards Jaune.

Needless to say, Summer was overcamed with the adorableness that was Iris's little boy.

"Oh my goodness! He is so cute! Is this Jaune?" asked Summer.

"That's right. Summer, Tai, meet my little bundle of joy, Jaune. Jaune these are my friends from when I was a huntress at Beacon, Summer Rose and Taiyang Xiao Long." said Iris, introducing her friends.

The two of them smiled down at the boy, each introducing themselves as well before Tai pulled up the stroller holding the little girl.

"So this is little Yang? She looks just like her mo... Oh, I'm sorry." said Iris, apologizing to the couple as they held their head down.

"No mother, huh? Damn, poor girl." thought Morito, as he remembered his days with no one to call family.

"How long has it been?" asked Iris.

"Six months." said Taiyang.

'Six months?" asked Iris in bewilderment.

"Six months? What the actual fuck?" thought Morito.

"How could she do that? How could she just leave us like that?" asked Taiyang, her face contorting in anger before Summer wrapped her arms around him, hoping to calm him down.

"Ah, fuck." thought Morito, remembering all the times he saw children orphaned by the horrors of war. He always did have a soft spot for kids and so using what little motor skills he poccessed, Morito reached over to the girl, placing his hand on her arm. To which the girl wrapped her arms around his hand, keeping him there. "Ah, fuck." thought Morito as the parents crowded around the two. Iris and Summer, each had smiles on their faces, while Taiyang had a tight frown and the glare of a fatherly lion. "Piss off, Papa Bear, I'm not a lolicon... Wait." thought Morito cutting himself off before he entered shark-infested waters.

"They're so cute together." gushed Iris.

"Don't they? I think Yang found something she likes." said Summer, smiling as Yang, tightened her grip around Jaune's arm, to which Morito attempted to pull his arm back to no avail.

"So what are you two doing here with Yang? Is there any problems going on?" asked Iris.

"We tried to give her a haircut the other week and well..." said Taiyang as he gained the infamous thousand eye stare.

"She threw a Raven." said Summer, reminding them all of the misery they all went through when someone would mess with Raven's hair.

"Oh dear." said Iris, placing her hand on Summer's shoulder.

"What about you? Is something wrong with Jaune?" asked Summer.

"He won't let me breastfeed him." said Iris, shocking Taiyang.

"And that's a problem?" asked Taiyang.

"Of course it's a problem! Look at me! I've nursed six healthy baby girls and now my own little boy is actively refusing to be nursed?" asked Iris.

"Did you eat something that's messing with your aura? Sometimes there's fruits with traces of poison in their cores that, while not harmful to those whose aura has developed over the years, can be harmful towards infants. Maybe Jaune has an innate sense of this." suggested Summer.

"Or maybe the boy doesn't want to be breastfed?" suggested Taiyang, only to recieve a deadpanned glare from the girls.

"Yes!" thought/shouted Morito.

"Tai, just go check on the doctor's window." said Summer, sending Taiyang off and away from the conversation.

"Fuck!" thought/shouted Morito as he was forced to listen to all of the suggestions from the women over why he refused to be breastfed, other than the main reason as to why.

This conversation between the two woman continued on for more than 10 minutes while Morito found himself trapped as Yang had somehow managed to escape her stroller and climb into his, wrapping her arms and legs around him.

It only thanks to combined efforts of Summer, Taiyang, Iris and Dr. Doyle that Morito became free from Yang's anaconda like grip.

After being taken away from her newfound favorite cuddle buddy, Yang began to cry.

"Oh, shhhh, it's okay sweetie. It's okay. I'll tell you what, if you're a good girl then I promise I'll arrange a little play date between you and Jaune. That's alright, right Iris?" asked Summer as she cradled Yang in her arms.

"Of course it's alright. Right, Jaune? Wouldn't it be fun playing with Yang?" asked Iris, smiling down at her son.

"No. No, it wouldn't!" thought/shouted Morito.

"See? Jaune's excited about his future playdate with you, Yang." said Iris.

"Oh, come the fuck on!" thought/shouted Morito.

This seemed to calm Yang down a bit which Summer took as a good sign before placing her back in her stroller.

After that whole fiasco was taken care of Dr. Doyle lead the couple and Yang into the next room, leaving Iris and Jaune alone in the waiting room.

"Looks like you made a new friend today, Jaune." smiled Iris.

"Great~." thought Morito, already dreading the future meeting with Yang. He knew for a fact he would used as a human body pillow. Something of which, while endlessly annoying him, was something that he became used to after many nights of his female proteges and daughter slipping into his cot late at night and cuddling up next to him.

The two eventually sat in silence with Iris choosing to read the laste trends in Vale and Morito watching the news of the little television.

Today the host of VNN, Lily Lilac, was reporting on news of the White Fang.

The White Fang.

Morito would often hear about the group from Orville on rare occasions, though this only the case during his conversations with a man named Ghira, who was apparently the founder of the White Fang.

Despite not meeting the man nor quite understanding the whole racism against the Faunus thing, Morito could definitely say that he held some respect towards Ghira. To willingly make yourself the target of hatred and bigotry in order for the betterment of the world was something Morito respected.

Turning his attention back towards the new broadcast, Morito watched as Lily segwayed from the news reel of the White Fang to the news reel of the Schnee Dust Company, or more commonly referred to as the SDC. It appeared as the current owner of the SDC, Jacques Schnee, had named his eldest daughter, Winter Schnee, his eventual heir. Though by the looks of the girl, who couldn't have been older than 13 years old, was not excited about her new position.

"Poor kid. Kind of reminds me of Eleanor a little bit." thought Morito.

"Up next on VNN, it appears that Mistral is facing it's newest crimnal pair to date, Dodger Dawkins and Olive Twist. A pair of would-be pickpockets who have graduated from petty thievery to armed robbery. Authorities have assured that two of them will be stopped." announced Lily Lilac.

"Typical Mistral government. Always pushing the responsiblities of their people onto others and then acting shocked when it eventually backfires on them." said an irritated Iris. "I bet those two were starving children left abandoned on the streets."

This sparked various memories of when Morito would find orphaned children on the streets, stealing in order to survive to the next day. Though this would eventually become a miracle itself.

This made Morito wonder...

How were the others?

Did they win the battle?

Was his sacrifice meaningless?

He may never know.

In the end he'd have to have faith.

And well, ain't that a bitch.

"Jaune Arc." called Dr. Doyle, holding open the door for Summer, Taiyang, and Yang to leave.

After a quick goodbye between the adults and a soft whine from Yang, Iris rolled the stroller into the room, where she placed Jaune on the counter.

Dr. Doyle, grabbing his equipment, performed your standard check up on him before turning towards Iris to discuss the issue. "Alright Mrs. Arc, what seems to be the problem?"

"Well, you see doctor. Through my years of being a mother, having birthed six healthy baby girls, each of them took to breastfeeding with relative ease but Jaune... He actively refuses to be nursed. I've tried everything I could think of but he still refuses. It's gotten to the point where my husband and I are worried he won't get the needed nutrients." explained Iris.

Dr. Doyle hmmed at this, "Have you ingested anything strange during your pregnancy? It has been researched that infants have this innate sense of things that could potentionally be considered "harmful" to them."

"Nothing at all. I've always stuck to a strict diet of the basic food groups, even when I was pregnant with my girls." said Iris.

"Has there been any recent change in his behavior? Any night terrors or anything of the like?" asked Dr. Doyle.

"Now that you mentioned it, Jaune hasn't cried in months. At first we thought it was strange but I guess after a few weeks we just grew used to it." said Iris.

After several minutes of Iris and Dr. Doyle discussing the problems with little Jaune, they were finally able to come to a solution... Bottle Iris's breast milk.

A solution that, while solving Morito's embarrassment of being a 40 year old man in an infant's body nursing on a woman's breasts, would not solve his problem of being a 40 year old man in an infant's body nursing on a bottle filled with breastmilk.

"Now, I'm going to prescibe you a set of pills that should help with any additional "problems" you may face with the boy." said Dr. Doyle, handing Iris a small orange pill bottle.

Seeing the worried esxpression of her face, Dr. Doyle attempted to rectify the situation. "You're worried."

Iris turns to the doctor, staring at him.

"Er, forgive me. But I'm somewhat familiar with the feeling." said Dr. Doyle.

"How so?" asked Iris.

"You see, I wasn't always a doctor, at least not of the child variety. For the first few years of my life I was a combat medic. Always sent out with the newest batch of soldiers to ensure they made it back home. Of course, it was never that simple." said Dr. Doyle, gaining the thousand eye stare.

"I know the feeling." thought Morito.

"No, it never is. But I don't see how that translates to my current situation." said Iris.

"What I mean to say is that it's alright to be worried or afraid. The world is a harsh and dangerous place and some of us don't last very long and yet each and every day we all step outside our doors and continue onward with our daily lives. Now I know that could be categorized as ignorant or brain dead but I prefer to see it as courage. And like the great Avon Warwickshire once said: "Courage is not the absence of fear. Rather, it is acting in spite of it." I believe in those worlds each and every day I walk out my door." said Dr. Doyle, smiling at Iris.

"That is very touching but I'm not sure that was Avon." said Iris.

"What?" asked Dr. Doyle.

"That quote. I'm not sure he said it." said Iris.

"...Are you sure?" asked Dr. Doyle.

"Yes." said Iris.

"...Oh." said Dr. Doyle.

"But it was still a very good quote. We'll...um...be going. Have a good day doctor." said Iris, pushing the stroller away.

"Ah, yes and you as well Mrs. Arc." said Dr. Doyle as the mother walked out the building before sighing in embarrassment and walking over to a face downed picture. Flipping it over to reveal a picture of him and his platoon before their final mission. And there standing next to him was his squad leader, Captain Holly Baldrick.

The doctor smiled at the photo before hearing the door to his building chime once more, indicating a new customer.

"Hello and welcome to Dr. Doyle's Child Care. How can I help you today?" asked Dr. Doyle

And so as Iris pushed the stroller holding her son out of the building the ringing chime of her personalized scroll caught her attention.

Opening it up, revealed it to be her husband, Orville.

"Hello sweetie. How are the girls?" asked Iris.

"They're alright. Verde made another rogue robot again and it sort of blew up in the backyard" said Orville.

"So it's an average tuesday then?" asked Iris, smiling as her husband grimaced."

"Yeah... Anyway, I'm calling to tell you that Ghira called earlier, he wanted to invite us all to Menagerie at the end of the year." said Orville.

"Oh I haven't seen Ghira and Kali since our wedding day. It'll be nice catching up with them and it wouldn't be all that bad spending some time in the tropics. But are you sure that's a good idea? We both know that not all of the Faunus in Menagerie take so well to Humans visiting." said Iris.

"Honey, I know what you're thinking and there's nothing to worry about. Ghira assured me that while we are there, we'll be granted immunity from any and all dangers. We'll have guards and even the Belladonna seal as our passes. Besides I wouldn't mind seeing my sweet little rainbow goddess in all her glory~" said Orville.

"Hmm, well I certainly mind exploring my golden mountain man." said Iris, flirting back with her husband.

"Keep it in your pants, pervs." thought Morito.

"Well, I suppose it wouldn't be a problem. Just remember to tell the girls that if any of them misbehave before the trip, then we'll leave them here with her." said Iris.

"Her? Honey, are YOU sure? You DO remember what happened last time she babysat our girls, right?" asked Orville, remembering the horrors he faced on that day.

"Yes, sweetie. Will that be a problem?" asked Iris in a sweet, innocent way that properly showcased the amount of control she had over her mountain of a husband.

"Y-Yes ma'am. Y-You have a safe trip back. I-I love you..." said Orville, quickly shutting off his scroll to in hopes that it would protect him.

"Ah, I do so love that man." said Iris as she pushed the stroller along to the transport station.

"Note to self: DO NOT piss her off." thought Morito.


	4. Vacation To Menagerie

**Greetings everyone! It's Phony with another chapter of Gun X RWBY and I'll be honest with you guys, I was actually going to end this chapter earlier before I realized I had essentially created a Chekhov's Gun, so I decided to go a bit further with the chapter because you guys deserve it. Anyway hope you all enjoy the new chapter! Till next time!**

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Chapter Four

It's been a whole year already and Morito had only this to say: "HELP!"

So, yeah.

Life had been a roller coaster for Mr. Master Rank.

From being put into Pre-school, where he was forced to become Yang's personal body pillow.

To being his seven sister's personal boy toy.

And no, not like that, pervs.

For an entire year, Morito, or Jaune as his family had been calling him, has been put into dresses, had makeup put on, and had what little hair he did possess turned into various hairstyles ranging from; a ponytail to pigtails.

And if that wasn't bad enough, Iris and Orville were being complete and utter doting parents.

Orville, despite being the gigantic mountain of a man that he appeared to be, was nothing more than a man who was wrapped around his wife's and daughter's fingers.

While Iris, a woman who seemed to have this glow of innocence, was a tiger mom whenever someone would mess with her "little boy."

It wasn't bad enough Morito was forced to endure this level torture but now he was being charted across the ocean to an island, called Menagerie, with his family on vacation.

On the plus side, at least he'd be free of Yang and her incessant need to hold him in a vice.

And he'd be able to learn more about the Faunus, a race of humans with animal characteristics.

Yes, he did have Chrome, who was a Faunus, but there was very little information he could get from a 2 year old.

Of the information he did know, which he acquired from watching the news, documentaries, and conversations between others, he knew that the world he resided in was called Remnant. And that the place where he currently lived in was a small island called Patch, which was just off the coast of Vale, one of the four kingdoms that represented the capitals of their homes.

First the was the kingdom of Vale, which resided in the continent of Sanus. With it's tall buildings and diverse culture as well as it's large port area, the kingdom of Vale had become the international point for all trading between the four kingdoms. But the Vale was not without it's misdeeds, from the criminal underworld to the failed expansion known as Mountain Glenn.

Next was the kingdom of Mistral, located on the continent of Anima, which was the second largest landmass in Remnant. It also encompassed a wide range of ecosystems and diverse cultures. Some of the terrain included steep wind-carved cliffs, swamp, and marshlands.

Then there was the kingdom of Atlas, formerly known as Mantle, which resided on the continent of Solitas. Unlike the other kingdoms' governments, Atlas's govenment, military, and the academy function was merged into a single ruling government. Located in the far noth of Remnant, the terrain is a vast iceland, reminiscent of the arctic back on earth. Then of course there was the Schnee Dust Company, a corporation located in central Atlas that controlled all manner of mining, testing, distribution, and eventual selling of a crystalized mineral known as Dust.

Dust was a crystalized mineral found deep underground that appeared to have the elements themselves embedded within. This can range from fire to lighting to gravity.

And now, here Morito was with his mother and father, on the island of Menagerie.

Wait, where were his sisters?

Well...

Elsewhere, the girls were currently on the ceiling of their home. Their bodies were shrouded in a purple aura and sitting below them, sipping a pipping hot cup of tea while Chrome took a nap in her chair, was Glynda Goodwitch.

"Hmm. Peace and quiet." said Glynda.

"U-Umm, Ms. Glynda. We're really, really, REALLY sor-" started Chiffon before being silence when a strip of duck tape levitated up to her and covered her mouth.

"Peace. And. Quiet." said Glynda, glaring at the girls, who all nodded with duck tapes on their mouths.

And now that only left Morito, Orville, and Iris as they walked off the massive transport ship.

And standing at the base of the ship, was another mountain of a man with black hair and yellow eyes, a woman, also with black hair, yellow eyes, and a set of feline ears attached to her head and holding her right hand was a little girl with long black hair, bright yellow eyes, and a small set of cat ears on her head as well.

"Ghira! It's been too long, old friend!" said Orville, grasping his friend's outstretched hand.

"It truly has been, Orville." said Ghira, shaking his friend's hand.

While the two men spoke about their daily lives, Iris and Kali were busy trying to introduce their children, though much to the dismay of both, neither wanted to interact.

The little girl, who was introduced by her mother as Blake, kept hiding behind Kali's legs, her ears drawn down.

It wasn't until Morito decided to step forward and hols his hand out to her that Blake looked at him. Seeing that she was still a bit hesitant, Morito decided to smile at her, showing her his pearly white teeth.

But this only seemed to worsen Blake's mood as she only hid behind Kali's legs once again, her face cheeks red.

The two women, seeing this decided to leave it alone for the time being and have their husbands take them to back to the Belladonna home.

Along the way, Morito was able to see the various species of the Faunus race. From Faunus with the traits of mammals, to reptilians, to aquatic, to arachnids, to aviary. It seemed the compared to Humanity as a whole, the Faunus race was the most diverse.

Besides that it appeared the many of the Faunus were staring at them, or more importantly at the three humans that were walking their streets.

And apparently Morito wasn't the only one to notice as the parents were all on high alert.

It wasn't until the group had made it the Belladonna home that Ghira turned to address the gathering.

"People of Menagerie, I would like to introduce you all to my old friends, Orville and Iris Arc and their son, Jaune Arc. They are invited guests of the Belladonnas' and will be granted our seal for the remainder of their stay. Any and all actions seen as hostile will be swiftly dealt with by our police force. That is all." said Ghira, holding open the doorway for the others before walking in himself.

"I must apologize for their behavior. Many of them are still at odds about Humans." said Ghira.

"It's alright, old friend. I know that centuries of bigotry and hate can cause anyone to distrust others." said Orville.

"Regardless, I hope you and your family have an enjoyable trip here." said Ghira.

"Speaking of family, where are your girls? I would've expected to see them stampeding off the ship when you arrived." asked Kali.

"They broke my number one rule and so now I'm having Glynda watch them." said Iris, causing Kali to start laughing.

"Oh, Iris. Years later and you're still the same as always." said Kali as the women both started laughing.

Afterwards, Ghira decided to show the Arcs to their rooms while Kali went and prepared some tea.

"And this is where you will be staying. I've already went and prepared some soundproofing walls and for when you and your wife...you know. As well as prepared a seperate room for your son." said Ghira.

"Thank you, Ghira. That's very thoughtful." said Iris.

"You're welcome, Iris. Dinner will be ready in an hour. Untill then I'd like to chat with Orville in my office." said Ghira.

"Is it important?" asked Orville.

"Yes. It is." said Ghira, staring at Orville with a serious look.

"Very well." said Orville.

"Well, while you men enjoy your little chat, I'll take little Jaune and chat with Kali." said Iris, taking her son's hand and walking away.

"What could they be talking about? It must be about the White Fang. Lord knows how many times I've heard their conversations over the phone go. I need to find out more." thought Morito, as Iris led him away.

Once the two entered the main living area of the house, there sat Kali and Blake, with Kali sipping on some tea and Blake "reading" a book.

It didn't take long for the two women to begin gossiping about their lives, bothing laughing at the other's misfortunes.

Seeing his opening, Morito got up from his entrapment and backtracked the way he and his mother had come.

Halfway there, Morito felt a presence behind him. Looking behind himself, Morito turned to see Blake, trailing behind him and attempting to hide behind a wall.

Morito sighed before gesturing for her to join him, knowing that she'd only follow anyway.

After being joined by Blake, the two continued their walk towards the office, where the two men were talking.

Morito turned to look at Blake and after getting a closer look, Morito found himself staring at her ears. In all honesty, he found them cute. Reminded him of a stray kitten he'd find on the streets.

It wasn't until Blake's cheeks turned red and puffed out that Morito realized she didn't like have her ears looked at. So he turned his attention back towards his goal and headed further down the hallway.

After a short while the two were able to make it towards the office and using his enhance hearing skill, ELS, Morito was able to hear the conversation inside.

"Ghira, are you serious?" asked Orville.

"Yes, I am. It is time." said Ghira.

"But to step down as head of the White Fang, it would undoubtly cause a scene." said Orville.

"I have no doubts but I know that my time as leader must come to an end. My brethren in the White Fang are getting more and more restless with my passive nature and our seeking to take matters into their own hands. At least with this, I can sleep soundly knowing that my next chosen will lead them well." said Ghira.

"Who did you choose?" asked Orville.

"Sienna Khan." said Ghira.

"Sienna!? You're giving HER the position?" asked Orville.

"That is correct. I have worked with Sienna on various occasions and though I cannot approve of her ways of achieve our goals, I can admit that she will always have a valid reason behind them." said Ghira.

"But Sienna? Out of everyone, you chose Sienna? Ghira, need I remind you that she has a bad history of getting innocent lives killed in her so called "crossfires"." said Orville.

"I won't deny the wrongs she had committed in her past but she has grown from it. Learned from it. I believe that Sienna has what it takes to lead the White Fang. I only ask that you trust in my decision." said Ghira.

"Alright, I'll trust you. Brothers know you've more than earned it after everything we've been through. But mark my words, Ghira. If my family is ever placed in danger or harmed in anyway, I'll slaughter every member of the White Fang, starting with you. And you know about my promises." said Orville.

"An Arc never breaks his promise, I remember. And you have my word that no harm will come to you or your family." said Ghira.

"Good." said Orville, walking towards the door.

Blake, not wanting to be caught eavesdropping on her father, took Morito's hand in her's and ran away.

Despite Blake being a little girl, her strength was certainly above average as he felt his arm almost being pulled out of it's socket.

It wasn't until Blake and pulled him to the courtyard that the two stopped to catch their breaths.

When Blake saw that she was still holding Morito's hand, to which her face turned red once more before dropping his hand and folding her ears, turning away from him.

Jeez, the girl must really hate him.

Seeing no point in remaining any long, Morito turned to head back into the house only for Blake to grab his hand and take him further into the yard and towards a large tree.

Why had she brought him here?

Let it be known that throughout his entire life, Morito was and always will be completely dense towards women and their complex emotions.

As Blake sat down against the tree, she opened her book and began reading.

"She brought me here to watch her read? Seriously?" thought Morito.

But when Morito tried to walk away, Blake only grabbed his hand and pulled him down to sit next to her.

Turning to look at her, Morito watched as she opened her book and began reading, only to nudge Morito when she found a spot she liked and wanted to show him.

But for Morito this only reminded him of the torture he endured with Yang. What was with these girls and their constant need of him. He never had this much problem with...one second thought, nevermind. She was much worse than these girls.

And so Morito resigned himself to being Blake's reading buddy until the girl began to fall asleep, leaning her head against his left shoulder.

It wouldn't be much longer as a guard saw the two children and after notifying their parents, the four adults came to collect them but once they had seen the two children their emotions differed; with Iris and Kali looking gleeful, Orville having a look of pride, and Ghira glaring at Morito much like Taiyang would.

"For the millionth time; I. AM. NOT. A. LOLICON!" thought Morito.

For the next few weeks, the Arcs spent their time exploring the island of Menagerie, from it's rich and artistic environment to it's friendly inhabitants to the culture that resinated with it. On their last night there, Ghira decided to end their visit with a feast befitting a guest of the Belladonna's.

There was trout.

Bass.

Swordfish.

Salmon.

Sharkfin soup.

Sushi.

Seeing a theme here?

If not then allow me to simplify it.

There was a shit ton of fish.

And to see three people with feline characteristics eat what they would consider a feast of kings, it was...well...confusing to say the least.

Now don't get it wrong, Morito enjoyed fish as much as the next guy but it did raise some very interesting questions; like:

1\. If there are Faunus out there that share thame characteristics as other animals then does that mean Faunus are placed into their own seperate categories? Like herbivores, carnivores, and omnivores?

2\. If a Bovine-Faunus ate a hamburger, would that be cannibalism?

3\. If one were to eat seabass next to an Aquatic-Faunus, would that be considered insulting?

Shit, this is more confusing those fucking movies about animals living together in harmony...they all raised the exact same question.

WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK IS THE FOOD SITUATION!?

These questions only left Morito more and more baffled and the only two humans, who were continuing about their dinner as if nothing strange was going on, certainly didn't help anything.

Regardless of the numerous unanswered questions, Morito found the meal to be thoroughly enjoyable, from hearing various hunting stories between Ghira and Orville to how Kali and Iris became fast friends and eventually bridesmaids at each other's weddings. Overall, it was an enjoyable evening.

And as Iris laid her son down for bed, Morito's mind went to work on his future plans.

First, he'd need to get back into his old training habits. It'll be daunting, especially in this new body of his but with everything he's learned so far, from the Grimm, bandits, and potential war between the kingdoms, something told him it would be within his benefit to do so.

Then he'd need to establish a "base of operations." Someplace where he'd be able to obtain neccessary information and knowledge of the criminal underworld.

After that he'd be able to raise money, or Lien as the world referred to it as, by taking on freelance work. Though he'd have to start out simple and build up from there.

But first he'd need to alert everyone of the msyterious intruder that we nearing his crib.

"HELP!" shouted Jaune, shocking the intruder and waking the occupants of the house, all of which were trained warriors.

The intruder, reacting quickly, threw a blanket around Morito and leapt through the paper window, landing on the stone pathway of the garden.

After landing, several lights appeared, shining on the man and revealing a set of twin antlers attached to his head. The man wore a plain beige shirt and tan shorts, only hiding his mouth and nose with a thin wrap.

"Halt!" shouted one of the guards, hefting his spear.

But the intruder retorted with; "No!" before taking off into the nearby forest, carrying the bag old his hostage along the way.

All while this was happening, the intruder was being hunted by the most dangerous creatures of all time.

Angry parents.

And to say they were angry would be understatement.

These parents...were...PISSED. THE. FUCK. OFF.

Ghira and Orviles were charging through the forest, knocking down tree after tree with their immense strength. While Iris and Kali sped through the with almost unbelievable speed and agility.

And the intruder, despite being chased by several armed guards and four pissed off parents, kepts his grip on the bag carrying a one year old. It wasn't until the man stopped at the edge of a cliff and held the bag over the edge that the people chasing him stopped.

Ghira glared at the man, clenching his fists before reaching out.

"Return the child and you will be given a fair and just trial." said Ghira.

"No, the humans must suffer for what they've done to the Faunus!" shouted the intruder.

"The Arcs have done nothing unjust throughout their visit! They have been kind and caring towards the Faunus of Menagerie." said Ghira

"These humans are the reason we're stuck on the fuckin' miserable island!" shouted the intruder.

"And you are an example of what the Humans believe us to be! If we are to have any hope of obtaining peace then we must show the world that we are more than what they make of us! We. Are. Not. ANIMALS!" shouted Ghira.

"If the humans wish to paint us as monsters...then I'll be the first to show them what a monster truly is." said the intruder, releasing his grip on the bag only for a pristine silbery-blade to pierce his body, catching the bag before it could fall any further.

The intruder, coughing crimson liquid, looked down at the sword that skewered his chest before looking into the rage-filled eyes of Orville Arc.

No words were exchanged as Orville pulled the sword from the intruder's chest, blood gushing out from the wound.

Orvilled glared down at the man, suffering from his wound and Orville, raising his sword into the air, plunged the sword into the man's throat, ending his life.

Orville rose to his feet, his sword's tip coated in a dead man's blood.

Iris, rushed towards thew bag, throwing it open to see her little boy, Jaune. The crying mother wrapped her arms around her child, holding him close to her.

Orville, looked back at the others gathered around, only speaking one word; "Leave."

By the sound of his voice, the men and women knew that this was to be taken as a command and after a short nod from their Chieftan, holstered the weapons and went back to the house, leaving only the parents and Jaune.

"I told you that if any harm came to my family, then I would not hesitate to end everyone involved, Ghira." said Orville.

Ghira kept silent, choosing to allow his comrade to continue.

"You promised that nothing to harm my family if they stayed here. You broke that promise." said Orville.

"I know and I am-" started Ghira, only to be silenced as Orville's sword came just millimeters from his neck.

"Your apologies mean shit to me, now. I promised and I make due on my promises." said Orville, raising his sword and cleave Ghira in two.

The man, simply closed his eyes and awaited death, knowing that Orville would not rest until his blood laid on his sword. And as the sword drew closer and closer, Ghira sent a silent prayer to his wife and daughter.

"Stop." said a voice.

As if by the voice's command, Orville's blade stop just shy of Ghira's head.

The parents turned to see, Jaune standing with an angered but determined look on his face.

Jaune pointed at the sword, glaring at it before pointing at Ghira, "No." said Jaune.

Orville, seeing what his son wanted, sheathed his blade before glaring at Ghira.

"My son spared your life this day. Do not waste it." said Orville, before walking back towards the house.

Ghira looked down at the boy who had chosen to spare his life, Ghira knew this boy knew what sparing his life would mean and chose to do so anyway. And for that Ghira would be in the boy's debt forever.

It would be around midday that ship to bring the Arcs back home would dock.

And as Orville and Iris carried the luggage aboard, Morito stood on the dock nearby, looking over the area. Several of the Faunus kept looking back at the family, though keeping their distance after hearing of Orville killing one of their brethren.

As Morito stood at the dock, a single thing caught his attention, a set of tiny black cat ears rushing towards him.

It was Blake, running towards him at breakneck speeds...okay so she was running as fast as a one year old girl could go.

Seeing Blake walk towards his son, Orville took a step forward only for a hand on his shoulder from Iris to stop him. Looking back at his wife, Orville watched as she slowly shook her head before looking back at her son and Blake.

Morito watched as Blake cast her eyes down to the ground, her black, as the night sky, hair, which was normally styled and brushed, had clear cases of bedhead but despite this Blake still came to see the Arcs off. She wore no foot protection and in her arm was the same little untitled booklet that she carried around.

It wasn't until Blake shoved the booklet into his arms that Morito took notice that Blake had wrapped her arms around him.

Seeing what he considered his friend, Morito wrapped his arms around the little cat girl, holding her close.

This went on for a few minutes longer than one would think a hug should last but Morito didn't mind at all, he wouldn't be the man he was today if he left a girl feeling sad.

It took the ship blowing it's horn to make the two children break apart.

But still seeing Blake with a sad look kept Morito from moving forward and so he did what he'd always do with his students whenever they felt sad and placed his hand on her head, right between her ears.

The look on her face was almost enough to make Morito stay but he knew that the longer he stayed the more trouble he'd bring to the Belladonnas.

So he'd have to settle for a soft patting of the a red faced cat girl.

Morito smiled at the little cat, still patting her head as her face grew redder and redder from anger before taking his hand off and smiling at her.

And as Blake watched the little boy walk back onto the massive ship that would take him away from her, her cheeks red from embarrassment, she thought back to the day they had met and how she wanted to say something...anything that would tell the mysterious boy what she was thinking of but nothing would come to mind. And now here he was walking towards the ship and was when he was halfway there that Blake remembered something her mommy once told her.

When a girl wants something...she takes it.

And by all the was holy in remnant did Blake take it.

The little cat-eared girl grabbed the boy's hand and placed a kiss on his left cheek.

The look of the boy's face was enough for Blake's own cheeks to redden from embarrassment and took off back to her house, leaving a doumbstruck little boy to walk back onto the ship.

And that was the end of the Arcs' trip to Menagerie and now they were headed back home to Patch.

And as the family walked through the doorway to their house, the sight of several girls all attached to the ceiling were enough to draw the ire of Iris.

"Glynda?" asked Iris.

"Glynda." said the girls.


	5. A Patch of Roses

**Greeting everyone! I hope you're all ready for another chapter of Gun X RWBY! Now allow me to answer a few questions that our resident "Asdislt" has for us. To answer your question on whether or not I'll make Morito his usual shota-size or place him at Jaune-size is something that I've been asking myself but recently I came to realize a simple solution: "It is Morito's soul, not his body." So, no, his will not be his usual shota self but do not worry, I do plan on having plenty of "shota" moments for everyone. And when it comes to semblance, I've decided to let you guys decide it. My only rules are this;**

 **1\. It cannot be the same semblance as another's. Though it can be similar.**

 **2\. It must not be overpowered. And yes, I know in the manga Morito is calssified as a master rank and that entitles overempowerment but as we all know even Master Ranks can get their asses kicked.**

 **3\. If you present an idea then please give a full detailing on what the semblance is, it's uses, and it's fallback (I.E. with Yang, her semblance grants increased strength but at the cost of irrationality and overindulgence in that her semblance can beat anything in her path.).**

 **Whelp, that's everything! Hope you all enjoy the new chapter! Till next time!**

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Chapter Five

It's been a whole year since the incident on Menagerie and the Arcs have returned to the island of Patch to continue their daily lives; Orville has returned to being the head of the local militia, Iris went back into her routine as a stay-at-home mom, while the kids went back to school.

Life had been strange to say the least for our resident infantile mercenary, from having to learn more and more about the strange world he was in to having to deal with the fact that most of his sisters seemed to find enjoyment in tormenting him with dresses and putting makeup on him. Which, to be honest, wasn't the worst thing he had to endure but still life would certainly be better without it.

And today was a very special holiday for the inhabitants of Patch. The island was a buzz with children racing from house-to-house, dressed in various costumes for the festivities, all in search for the delicious but tooth-aching treat known as, candy.

That's right, the island of Patch was celebrating the annual holiday of ghosts, ghouls, and goblins, Halloween.

The Arcs were in preparation for the holidays as Iris had each of her children dressed up in various costumes, each specially made by hand for each's own distinct personality.

Rouge was dressed in a sparkling ruby-red dress and her hair and makeup were done up to match.

Clementine was dressed as her favorite dustball player, Halley "The Comet" Astros.

Chiffon was a flower girl.

Verde was a cyborg with light-up lights and a specialized arm cannon, not functional for obvious reasons.

Jazz was a rockstar with bright neon highlights in her hair.

Violet was dressed in a gothic version of a ballet uniform.

Chrome was all dressed up as a miniature nurse.

And Jaune, everyone's favorite little boy, was dressed as an adorable little bunny with floppy ears and a little cottontail to match.

And for our resident mercenary it was equally as bad as when Kotonoha made him dress up in a dress..

But regardless, the toddler-sized mercenary was happy to see his new family with smiles on their faces. Their enjoyment of the festivities reminding him of when Mikado High held their own annual festival, the same day his own daughter, Rena, came to visit him.

He missed her.

Hell, he missed everyone in his old life.

But he knew they wouldn't want him to berate himself for not being strong enough to be there for them.

They'd want him to continue living, if not for him then for themselves.

So he'll enjoy the holiday with his family.

Perhaps it was time he let go of his past and accept his new life...as Jaune Arc, son of Orville and Iris Arc.

And so as Jaune watched his older sisters run from house to house in search of candy and his mother held his hand as they walked, a sudden weight on him leaned on his back. Turning his head revealed it to be Yang.

Yang, his "childhood friend", was dressed a little boxer; which seemed fitting considering it was Yang. And walking from behind her was a very pregnant Summer Rose, a smiling Taiyang, and an unknown man with dark gray hair, beady red eyes, and a ripped cape on his back. Attached to the man's side was a silver flask, no doubt contain some form of alcohol.

Iris smiled at the three adults before wrapping her arms around Summer, who attempted to do the same with her enlarged stomach keeping her from doing so. The two women laughed at the action before Iris turned to the stranger.

"Well, well, well. If it's Beacon's own dusty old Qrow." joked Iris.

The man, now named Qrow, smiled at Iris before taking a swig of his flask. "Hey, I ain't that old yet. It's good to see you again, Iris."

"Qrow just got back from Vacuo." said Taiyang, who placed Yang on his shoulders.

"Vacuo? What on remnant were you doing there?" asked Iris.

"Heard about a local oasis out in the badlands. Thought I'd check it out see I could find the promise land of gorgeous thighs and beautiful women." said Qrow, snickering as Summer smack the back of his head.

"Still the same as ever, Qrow." said Iris.

The four adults began laughing aloud before Summer groaned in slight pain, grabbing her stomach with both Qrow and Tai reaching for her only for her to raise her hand to stop them.

"I'm alright. I'm alright." said Summer, only her words didn't inspire confidence in the others.

Jaune watched from the side as the others attempted help Summer only for her to brush them aside, claiming that she was alright. But he knew better, just as the others did.

Summer, wishing to divert the attention she was getting, smiled at Jaune.

"Awe if it isn't little Jauney! All dressed up for Halloween and as a cute wittle adorable bunny too!" squealed Summer, in joy.

"Oh sure, why don't you make my obvious misery even worse." thought Jaune, attempting to cross his arms only for Chrome to latch herself to his side. Chrome was always like this, latching onto him whenever she felt shy or nervous. And to Summer it only served her more ammunition for his misery.

But luckily that wouldn't happen as the mountain man, himself, walked over to the group, all dressed up in his standard captain's uniform for the militia. A smile on his face as he walked up to his wife.

"Hey if it isn't the "big man" himself." joked Qrow, smiling at the mountain of a man.

"Qrow...I see you're still as drunk as ever." said Orville, looking at Qrow with a deadpanned face as Qrow raised his silver flask.

"Qrow just got back from Vacuo." said Iris.

"Vacuo...It's been quite awhile since I've visited." said Orville, frowning at a memory.

"Yeah, that was when you and I-" started Qrow before being cut off by Orville. "I know, Qrow. I remember."

It was obvious to Jaune that Orville, while not openly aggressive towards Qrow, did not hold the man in high regards. Unlike Ghira, who had become little more than a stranger in Orville's eyes.

After Qrow apologized to the man, Orville turned to smile at his wife, who in turn smiled back, before wrapping an arm around her waist and kissing her left cheek.

Jaune smiled before walking over to Yang, who had climbed off her father's shoulders and was sitting down and eating some candy.

The little Goldilocks smiled at him before handing him a chocolate bar, smiling.

Jaune took the treat, he may have been an adult in a child's body but even he enjoyed a nice chocolate bar every now and then.

And for the next few hours, as the island's residents continued to enjoy their holiday festivities and Jaune watched his siblings enjoy themselves, he took a seat next to Summer at a nearby bench.

Summer smiled at him, holding her stomach. An action that drew Jaune's attention, which also caught Summer's own.

"I'm alright, Jaune. Little one's just bursting with joy about seeing the world soon." joked Summer, rubbing her stomach, lovingly. "Would you like to feel?" she asked the little boy beside her.

Of course Jaune wasn't sure about this. He 'd felt many a pregnant stomach and well...none of them ever turned out well...wars did many horrible things to the abandoned mothers and there was only so much a man like him could do in a warzone. But this world was peaceful or as peaceful as one could hope for so...he placed his toddler-like hand on Summer's stomach and felt as the growing baby inside of her pressed against his hand.

It was the first time he'd ever felt something push back after numerous times of feeling nothing but a hollow void. This brought tears to his eyes as he continued rubbing Summer's stomach.

Summer watched with a worried expression as Jaune's eyes began to water before a trail of tears ran down his cheeks. And so Summer reached out for the boy, pulling him close to her aand holding him. Each time she would babysit little Jaune for Iris, she would always find herself amazed by his mature nature, almost as if he had the body of a baby but the mind of an adult and then it was moments like these, where Jaune would become vulnerable that she would remind herself that even if the little boy showed maturity unlike someone his own age, he was a child and so she held him.

After a few minutes, Jaune wiped his eyes, shocked that he had begun crying at all. Throughout his years as a mercenary and fighting in various war-torn areas, he had grown increasingly numb to the horrors...there's only so much one can face before they're left with nothing. But for Jaune, it was the miracles of life that moved him to tears. And now here he was wiping his red eyes of tears as Summer held him.

The two of them sat in silence before Summer turned to him; "You're a strange boy, Jaune." said Summer.

Jaune looked at her in confusion.

"Everytime I look at you, I don't see this naive, little boy. Instead, I see this...boy with the maturity of a grown man. You don't cry or get fussy when you don't get your way and you're always there to help whenever Yang or Chrome would get hurt. But I think what I find strange about you...is about your eyes." said Summer, confusing and alerting Jaune, who became tensed. Summer noticed this but didn't speak on it, instead choosing to continue. "I keep looking into your eyes expecting to see this shy and childish little boy...but whenever I look into your eyes I see this pain. And not the "I'm a depressed little kid" kind of pain...but the kind of pain a grown man obtains after facing the horrors life throws at them. I don't know how you got that pain but I want you to know that you don't need to feel that way and if you ever want to talk or just need someone to be there then know that I'll be here for you when you need me." said Summer, smiling at Jaune, before pulling him into a hug, which Jaune quickly returned.

Afterwards the two sat in peaceful silence, watching the velvet night sky when Summer began to feel a terrible pain in her stomach as a liquid ran down her left leg and it came to a sudden realization to the both of them.

Her water had just broke.

Jaune reacted quickly by grabbing Summer's scroll and after inputting her passcode, which he'd seem her put in numerous times before scrolling through her contacts and finding Qrow's number, which he then selected and put the phone on calling before putting the phone up to Summer's face.

Summer, seeing what he wanted, grabbed the scroll and held it up, waiting for the screen to boot up and showing Qrow's face.

"Hey, Sum. We've been looking all over for ya." slurred Qrow, obviously drunk.

Summer groaned in a mixture of pain and annoyance before addressing her teammate; "Qrow, listen up. My water broke."

And by god the look on drunk Qrow's face instantly reminded Jaune of Gaston's first time being wasted.

"You broke your water? Was it in a glass? Or...wait, was it ice? Cause then that'd make since." slurred Qrow.

"No, Qrow. MY. WATER. BROKE." said Summer, glaring at the screen.

"Oooohhhh...Oh...OH...OH SHIT! Tai! Summer said her water broke!" shouted Qrow, drawing Taiyang's attention, who rushed over and mashed his face against Qrow's trying to get into the screen.

"Summer!? What happened!? Where are you!?" shouted a distraught Taiyang, holding Yang on his shoulders.

"Oh brothers. My water broke and I need one of you to get me to a hospital. Now." commanded Summer.

"I knew this would happen. I knew it. I knew it. Ok, I'll be there as soon as I can!" shouted Taiyang before running off into the night shouting "I'm coming honey!"

"Tai, wait! You don't know where she is!" shouted Qrow before dropping his scroll and disappearing, the sound of bird echoing from the speaker of the scroll.

Summer only sighed, holding her head. "You know, I love those two but sometimes they just drive me completely insane."

Jaune couldn't agree more with Summer.

Throughout his years as a mercenary he'd often have to work alongside others that would, at times, cause Jaune to contemplate nuking the world. He could still remember the first time he worked with Chico, that guy took the meaning of "hothead" to an extreme. But right now wasn't the time for that, he needed to help Summer and he'd be damned if he was going to let her suffer. So Jaune used the only method he had at his disposal.

"HELP!" he shouted into the sky.

For many that didn't know, at this point in his life Jaune's body was that of a 2 year old and as such he didn't have full range of his vocal chords and could only, more or less, say one or two words; those being "Stop" and "Help". Words that he had begun using after being born into a family of several older sisters.

But for one multi-colored mother, it was her son's way of summoning her. And like a bolt of lightning, Iris had raced towards them through the crowds of the festival until she stopped, kneeling down to her little boy, holding him close; "Jaune! You're okay! I heard your scream and I came as soon as I could. What's wrong? What happened, baby?" asked Iris, looking over him for any sign of injury.

It wasn't until Jaune held up his arm, pointing to Summer that Iris took notice of her.

"Summer, what happened?" asked Iris.

"Oh, you know, was having a nice chat with little Jauney here when all of a sudden my water broke." said Summer, hiding her pain through a joke.

"Your water broke!? Why didn't you call someone? Wait...you called Qrow, didn't you?" she asked.

"Yeah...not my best choice...Can we go to a hospital now?" she asked, feeling embarrassed over her blunder.

Iris sighed before taking Summer's hand in her left and Jaune's in her right and began focusing on her aura. This went on for a few minutes when a multi-colored aura began to surround their bodies before turning bright white and when Jaune reopened his eyes, the three of them were at Patch's hospital.

Iris then led Summer and Jaune through the automatic doors of the hospital and into the reception room; "We need a doctor. Summer's water broke." said Iris, catching the receptionist's attention, who swiftly pressed the intercom for emergency. Afterwards a group of doctors and nurses came rushing down the hallway with a gurney in tow. After which they gently placed Summer onto the gurney before rushing her to the delivery room, leaving only Iris and Jaune with the job of notifying the others.

It was then that Iris noticed that Jaune was looking at her strangely.

This went on for a few minutes before she had realized that Jaune had never seen her use her semblance before.

For some odd reason this caused Iris to giggle.

This might've been considered strange to others but sometimes Iris would get this strange feeling that Jaune had the wisdom and maturity of a man twice his age. But she'd often have to remind herself that even if he had a level of maturity of that of a grown man, he was still a child and didn't know everything.

"Guess you're wondering what all of that was, aren't you?" asked Iris, looking into her son's blue eyes.

And so his mother decided to explain to him about aura, semblances, and souls.

Now for Jaune, he had faced beings with supernatural abilities that ranged from shapeshifting to creating golems to using numbers to defeat opponents and most would assume he had dealt with something similar to aura but they would be wrong. In his old life, while there were beings with otherworldly powers, none of them had aura. They didn't have this sort of "soul-based forcefield" to protect them from harm and Jaune had had the scars to prove it. But as his mother continue to explain to him the basics of aura and semblances, a thought occurred to him; if he was now a resident in this world and this world had things like aura and semblances then it only stood to reason that Jaune would have it as well and if he could somehow unlock it then that would accelerate his plans for a few years. This would require his full attention at a later date but for now his focus was turned to the automatic doors as a black crow slammed into the windows before falling onto the ground and turning in the drunk man, Qrow, who held his head in pain while Taiyang raced literally through the doors and down the hallway to Summer.

Following after them and stepping on Qrow was Orville, who was carrying Chrome in his arms, followed by the other older Arc sisters. "Honey, we came as soon as we got your message. Is Summer alright?" asked Orville, cradling Chrome in his arms.

"She's fine Orvie. Summer's just in labor and she's being taken care of right-" started Iris before being cut off by a scream.

"AHHHHH! Damn you, you blonde bastard!" shouted Summer.

"Now." said Iris, smiling at Orville.

After several hours of listening to Summer screaming bloody-murder and listening to Qrow trying to flirt with a nearby nurse was enough to make Jaune take a walk to a vending machine, nearby. After reaching the large dispenser of food and desserts, Jaune felt a hand grip the hem of his bunny costume. Turning his head over his right shoulder, Jaune looked to see Yang, her blonde locks hiding her face. And even without being asked, or forced, to do so, Jaune wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close to him. And so the two stayed there in silence, holding one another, until Yang pulled away, smiling, before walking back to Qrow, who was currently throwing up into a nearby trashcan and Jaune returned to sit beside his mother and father.

The group stayed in their spots for a few for minutes until the double doors ahead of them were pushed open, revealing a man, most likely in his late 30s with black hair and a goatee to match, in a doctor's uniform. "Are you all friends of the family?" he asked.

"Yes, sir. How is she?" asked Iris.

"Why don't you ask her yourselves?" asked the doctor, gesturing to the stretch of hallway behind him.

A few minutes go by as the doctor leads the group to where Summer and Taiyang were waiting for them, until they stopped at a doorway to which the doctor twisted the handle, pushing the door open and then laying on her hospital bed and holding a little baby girl, with red and black hair, and standing beside the bedside was a smiling Taiyang, who looked up at the group before waving them inside. Summer turned to smile at them, her silver eyes sparkling with joy.

"Come in, come in." said Taiyang, motioning for everyone to get closer.

Yang walked up closer to the bed, holding Jaune's hand and pulling him along with her. The two of them at the edge of the bed, where Summer looked down at them and smiled. She held the baby girl in her arms with tremendous care, and smiled down at the two children before turning to broadcast her baby girl to the children. "Yang, I'd like you to see your baby sister." said Summer, smiling as Yang reached out to hold her little sister's hand. The little gripped her big sister's finger with extreme tightness.

Yang smiled at her, enclosing her other hand around her little sister's own.

"Hi." said Yang, before pulling Jaune near her to see her baby sister.

Jaune smiled as he watched the little bundle of joy smile, holding her big sister's index finger. Another moment that made him at the joys of his past life.

After each of the children had had their turn of watching the newborn baby girl, Orville and Iris joined Yang and Jaune beside the bed, each of them smiling down at the little girl.

"She's adorable, just like her mother." said Iris, smiling at Summer and holding her hand.

"Her father's going to be fighting off boys with a stick, that's for sure." said Orville, laughing aloud while Taiyang merely grumbled in annoyance.

Have you thought of a name yet?" asked Iris.

"Well, We'd been thinking and...we want Qrow to name her." said Summer, smiling as everyone turned to look at the old drunk.

"W-What?" he stammered, watching as his two teammates smiled at him.

"Qrow, you've been beside us through every step of the way. You were there for Summer when she felt like she wasn't good enough to be a leader and you were there for me when Raven left. We'd be honored if you named our daughter. Please Qrow." said Taiyang, smiling and placing a hand on his friend's shoulder.

Qrow, on the other hand, looked at odds with himself. The man, wiped the sweat the was on his brow and it wasn't until he felt a hand on his own that Qrow's eyes opened to see Jaune, smiling up at him as if to say, "Do it."

Qrow reached out to hold the little girl, which Summer did without hesitation, her smiling face and her black and red hair were enough to make the old bird smile and when that little girl opened her eyes, revealing the same silvery-eyed ones her mother had, it was then that a name came to him.

A name that would ring true.

A name that people would look up to as a hero.

The little girl laughed as she attempted to reach out to the man.

He knew what to call her.

"Ruby. Ruby Rose." said Qrow, smiling at his little niece, who laughed at him.

The others smiled at the sight but none more so than Jaune, who watched the scene through the eyes of a man with a daughter of his own. And as Jaune watched the family pass little Ruby around to properly meet with everyone, he knew that this girl was destined for greatness.

Soon enough the little girl was handed to Jaune, who held the little girl in his arms, his hands curling around Ruby's tiny hand as her silver eyes sparkled with radiance and a single thought came to his mind.

"Ruby Rose, huh? Sounds like a main character."


	6. Father and Son

**Greetings everyone! This chapter of Gun X RWBY is going to be a bit shorter, mainly to balance out the next few chapters. Just another reminder that I am looking for any ideas on Jaune's Semblance. So far we have;**

 **1\. Berserk Mode (By Adislt, ZonZus, & AndyScull)**

 **2\. Inventory/Armory (By Adislt)**

 **3\. Sniper (By ZonZus)**

 **4\. Forcefield (By ZonZus)**

 **Side Note: I just caught the first episode of RWBY Chibi Season 3 and after watching it an idea came to my mind and so I've included a little Gun X RWBY Chibi omake at the end of the chapter. Hope you all enjoy!**

 **Till next time!**

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Chapter Six

It's been a good 5 years for our resident miniature mercenary. After the birth of Ruby Rose, Jaune had taken it upon himself to essentially becoming her "older brother". A place that was well received by the other members of the family. Now finally able to speak coherently and having full control over his muscles, Jaune has been able to dive back into his old life's habits of training his body. But where was he?

Ah, that's right. Jaune and his childhood friend, Yang, were both at elementary school. More specifically eating their lunches outside on the playground.

In many ways Yang reminded Jaune of some of his students and friends at Mikado High. Her long, flowing, blonde hair reminded him of Giselle's own. While her bombastic and excitable personality reminded him of the Saiga Sisters. And much like his old friends, she, too, has her annoyances. This comes in the form of god awful puns.

"Hey Jaune, what do you call a group of blondes?" asked Yang, grinning at her childhood friend.

"Yang, please, don't-" pleaded Jaune, only to get cut off by Yang.

"A blonderhood! Haha!" exclaimed Yang, laughing at her own pun while Jaune tried desperately to cover his ears with anything he could find.

AAAGGGHHH!

Get the picture?

But it wasn't all bad, now that Jaune could hold actual conversations with others, he's been able to learn more about his new family and spend more time with them.

Rouge would almost consistently steal him away from the others to be used as a model for one of her fashion projects, though she never said what the project was for. She'd mostly have him work beside her, mainly as an assistant or glorified model for her "manly" clothing. And sometimes she'd bring in Chrome to join them and they'd all work together to help Rouge on her projects.

Clementine had been spending time with him by playing him in games of Dustball, which now that he thought about it was a lot more dangerous than anything else. Apparently the whole point of the game is that each team has five players and both teams must deliver a singular spherical device to the opponents' goal to score a point. Each player is assigned a designated Dust Projection Bracer, or D.P.B., that enables players the ability to project and bend the elements, which they can then use to either help their own teammates or hinder their opponents. But Clementine seemed to enjoy it and Iris and Orville appear to be alright with the amount of danger the game possesses so it was alright with Jaune, after all he did WAY more dangerous things in his old life.

Chiffon had apparently taken it upon herself to teach Jaune the more "mundane" way of living; things like, cooking, cleaning, sewing, taxes, and just about everything else she could think of. But the motherly sister apparently hid a much darker personality beneath her...she was an extreme motorcycle racer. Once she got on one of those two-wheeled demon bikes it was like a switch went off in her head and she'd become a completely different person.

With Verde things were...strange. First she'd make sure to write a full report on his vital systems and emotional, mental, and physical stress. Then she'd have him help her in any sort of experiments she happened to be working on, sometimes it was a rouge robotic drone and other times it was a death ray...yes, a death ray...moving on. But more often then not, Verde just enjoyed spending time with him and having what she'd call "Familial Unit Interaction Test". Which confused him but he understood what she meant.

Jazz, was more of the "wildcard" of the Arc family. She'd pull him away to listen to some of her new songs, most of them were your generic hardcore punk rock music but it was her heartfelt, emotional songs that Jaune enjoyed the most as they showed him what Jazz truly was beneath her punk-rocker-self, a girl who genuinely enjoyed writing music and had pride in what she did. And she had even begun teaching him to play the guitar.

And where Jazz was the outspoken, energetic, rocker girl of the Arcs, Violet was her polar opposite. She was a quiet introvert, who preferred sit with Jaune and read one of her favorite books or engage in silent conversations. And sometimes she and Jaune would engage in some dancing, to which she'd teach him various dance styles and the history behind them. Which was not only an enjoyable activity with his sister but was also a good way of stretching his muscles and making him more flexible, which would help him leaps and bounds with training.

And lastly there was Chrome. Unlike most of the Faunus Jaune had met, where they would hide their traits in fear of persecution and malice from the human race, she would walk about with a smile on her face, proud of her heritage and even more proud of the family she had. Of course it also helped when Jaune would "protect" her from bullies by making use of his monstrous killing intent. It was enough to send most trained adults scuring back home. Chrome enjoyed art to an insane degree and showed unbelievable talent in it as well. Even at a young age, she was nearly an expert in any form of art you could imagine. Her greatest project was painting a family portrait that she painted when she was five years old, this was just an inkling of the amount of artistic talent she possessed and Jaune and the rest of the family were so proud of her.

But there was one member of the Arc family that was desperately trying to spend time with Jaune to no avail.

His father.

Orville had been trying day after day to find some way of spending time with his only son but any and all interactions with the boy was left to a few seconds at breakfast before Orville had to go to work and Iris would take Jaune to school. After which he'd be so busy working as the miltia leader and providing protection that he'd barely have any free time to stop and call. After by the time he'd get home Jaune would be fast asleep. and don't get him started on the weekends when both of them were free. He'd go out and look for Jaune but the boy would go off and disappear for hours at a time.

No, there was little Orville could do to spend time with his boy.

Unless.

No, Iris would castrate him for even bringing it up.

But.

She'd not even castrate him, she'd down right make a sport out it.

Although.

Stop it.

However.

Enough.

Perhaps.

STOP!

No, if he and his son were going to bond, he'd have to do something drastic.

Or.

He'd have to get it by his wife without her knowledge.

How about.

Wait a moment, he could use the excuse that he and his son are going to visit his old teammates in Mistral!

Seriously?

Yes, that's it!

There's no way she'll believe that.

She'll completely believe it!

It's moronic.

It's brilliant!

You know what nevermind, fuck it. If you want to suffer death and humiliation at the hands of Iris, then fine.

The Arc men are going to Mistral!

Elsewhere, Iris felt a liquid drip down her palms and after opening her crystal clear eyes, she noticed that her tea cup had a crack in it. No doubt from her squeezing it too had. Iris placed the cracked tea cup onto the table, sighing before crossing her arms and sitting back, a singular word escaping her mouth.

"Orville." said the glaring housewife.

It wouldn't be until hours later when Jaune had started walking back towards the house from his usual hidden training area. The breeze of the wind racing through the branches above him as he walked closer to the white two-story house of the Arcs. His blue eyes widening as he took notice of his seven older sisters outside of the house as noises came from the house.

Walking up to his sister Jazz, her spiky neon-blue hair bouncing around her shoulders as she turned to see him. Her usual vibrant eyes hidden behind her glasses. Today she was wearing her regular white sleeveless jacket and blue sports shorts. "Hey Jay." she said, smiling at her little brother.

"Hi Jazz, what's going on?" he asked, gesturing to the house as a glass window broke, before falling to the ground. The raging scream of Iris following suit, "Orville get your ass back here!"

To which the mountain man exclaimed with fear, "AAAHHH! Someone help me!"

"Oh, that. 'Parently dad wanted to talk with mom 'bout somethin' and then mom told us to wait outside and not even 2 seconds afterwards...this happened." said Jazz.

"Does this happen a lot?" he asked.

"Eh, only when dad wants to do something stupid and tries to lie to mom about it." said Jazz. "Speaking of which, where did you go off to?" she asked, looking down at her little brother.

"For a walk." said Jaune, hiding his true intentions.

"You really like going on walks, don't you? I can understand that, seven sisters and Yang constantly trying to admit her feelings for you. Sometimes a person needs to take a walk." said Jazz, her mentioning of Yang, causing him to grumble.

"She doesn't have feelings for me, she's just really affectionate." said Jaune, his denseness towards girls and their affection coming through.

"Oh, Jaune. One day. One day." said Jazz, making Jaune grumble some more.

"Besides even if she did have affections towards me, it wouldn't work, because I am not a lolicon." thought Jaune, before turning his attention back to the house as more girlish screams echoed from within it.

Several minutes had past as the Arc children took their spots around the yard. Rouge was braiding Chrome's hair. Jazz was playing on her guitar. Verde was tinkering with her "universal" remote. Chiffon was looking through her small personal cookbook and sitting beside her was Violet, reading her one little book. And Clementine was playing a game of Dustball with Jaune.

The sky above them was a clear azure blue sky with white puffy clouds roaming in the distance like cows on a pasture. In all actuality it was very beautiful day outside. A nice and quiet day.

"DEAR GOD, HELP ME!" screamed Orville.

A nice and quiet day, indeed.

And finally, after two hours of listening to Orville scream like a little girl, Iris dragged the mountain man by the ear outside and him kneel in front of the house.

"Girls, your father wants to take Jaune away for the next three weeks on a trip through Mistral." said Iris, drawing the ire of her girls, who all turned to glare at their father.

"Father, while I respect you in every way a daughter should, I must say that you absolutely moronic. Jaune is a child, he cannot make such a dangerous journey! And besides what would he wear!?" shouted Rouge, always making sure to let everyone know of the misery of having unfashionable clothes.

"Dad you can't take Jaune! Who's gonna help me with my Dustball practices? There's no way Rouge and her "delicate" fingers can do it!" shouted Clementine, causing Rouge to scoff at her.

"As if I'd ever participate in such a barbaric activity." said Rouge.

"Please you're just too "delicate" to get your hands dirty, princess." said Clementine, smirking as her twin began fuming.

"I told you not to call me that, you gorilla!" shouted Rouge. Clementine's own brow began to shift into anger.

"Oh you wanna see a gorilla? 'Cause I'm about to go "ape shit" on you!" shouted Clementine before lunging at her twin sister.

The two of them began to rustle and tussle around the ground, their slim and slender bodies wrestling against each other as a brown cloud of dirt piled up around them.

Chiffon, seeing things were getting out of hand was attempting to diffuse the situation along with Verde.

"Um...Rouge...Clemmy...um...can you please...um...stop...if that's okay?" stuttered Chiffon, who was dragged into the scuffle, followed by Verde, followed by Jazz, then Violet, and lastly Chrome, who dove straight into the pile.

both Iris and Jaune sighed, pinching the bridged of their noses as the girls all wrestling with each other.

"I hate children." said Iris, glaring at the girls.

"You and me, both." thought Jaune, watching the scuffle before Iris widened her mouth to say;

"GIRLS! FRONT AND CENTER! NOW!" shouted Iris, in a drill sergeant-like fashion.

And in response to their mother's words, the girls all stood at arms' length from each other, their right hands closed into a fist and placed over their hearts and with a resounding cry, shouted out; "YES, MA'AM!"

"Heh, well this brings back memories." thought Jaune, smirking as Iris went into her own version of "Drill Sergeant Mode."

And while Iris stood, arms crossed, as the wild wind raced through her rainbow-colored hair, giving her an aura of a well-trained warrior, her husband, Orville was left starstuck and awe at his wife.

"I love that monster of a woman." said Orville, smiling a goofy grin. His cheeks reddening from watching his wife.

"Oh god, its Gaston and Jeanne all over again." thought Jaune, remember when he introduced Gaston to Jeanne on their first mission together.

Finally, Iris sighed and raised her right hand, a gesture symbolizing that it was time to hold their tongues while she spoke.

"Now, after giving it some thought and having a "heated debate" with your father, I've decided that I will allow your father to take Jaune to Mistral as a sort of "father/son vacation". she said, raising her right hand once again as several of the girls were about to open their mouths.

"Girls, your father and brother have spent limitless amounts of time with all of you. And sometimes men need to spend time with other men to relax. So I will hear no arguments from anyone and this friday they will go on their trip." said Iris, making the girls lower their heads in disappointment, before walking over to her husband and holding his chin and raising it so their eyes connected. "But mark my words, Orville. If ANYTHING happens to Jaune, I swear to the brothers above that I will personally make you regret ever marrying me. Understand?" said Iris, her tone telling Orville all the horrors he will face if Jaune is hurt.

But instead of Orville being terrified of his wife, he stared into her crystal clear eyes like a lovesick puppy. "I love you so much, my rainbow goddess." said Orville.

Iris, smirked and placed a chaste kiss on his forehead. "I love you too, my mountain man." Before lifting him over her shoulder and bringing him into the house but not before looking back at the kids who were watching with a mixture of shame and disgust on their faces. "Girls, Jaune, why don't all of you go out and have some fun in town. Mommy and daddy are going to "talk" some more." she giggled before walking back into the house.

"Yeah, definitely like Gaston and Jeanne." thought Jaune before walking back to train.

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Gun X RWBY Chibi: Chapter One

How in the bloody hell did it turn out like this?

First his parents decided to send him off to some summer camp.

Then Summer decided to let Yang go along with them.

THEN for some unknown reason Blake randomly shows up.

AND NOW here he was having to listen to some tall, lanky, guy sing a blasted song for three freakin' hours!

According to the guy's nametag, his name was David and he was a camp counselor at this blasted camp.

"And that kids is why being here at Camp Campbell will be a rich and exciting time. Any questions?" David asked.

And instantly Yang's hand raised above the others.

"Yes...um...Yang! What is your question?" he asked, sounding overly enthusiastic.

"So where's boxing camp? That's what my mom signed me up for." said Yang, already wearing her yellow boxing gloves.

"Why here at Camp Campbell you can most surely find that many of our activities will meet and excced any qualifications you'd find at your standard boxing camp.

And just as Yang put her hand down, another raised, this time belonging to Blake.

"Yes, Blake. What's your question?" asked David.

"Where's a quiet place I can read?" she asked, holding her book under her arm.

"You'll find that our personal public library to be a very peaceful and quiet place to let your imagination run free." he said, waving his arms around like a moron.

After Blake lowered her hand another raised, that left...Jaune to face David, who had been staring at him with a look of psychotic joy.

"And what questions do you have Jaune?" asked David.

"Where's the nearest exit out of this fucking nightmare?" asked Jaune.

"Jaune. Language. We do not appreciate that kind of talk here at Camp Campbell." stated David, crossing his arms and remaining unaware to the camp's janitor?, chef?, or something dragging a dead Ursa behind him and towards the mess hall.

But the others noticed.

"Now I'll be off preparing the camp's atrium so that we can all have a very special camp out, where we can roast marshmallows and tell funny stories. Till then please feel free to explore and have lots of fun!" exclaimed David before walking away and leaving the three of them.

"That's it, I'm leaving." said Jaune, walking away before being followed by Yang and Blake.

"Hey Jaune wait up!" shouted Yang, wrapping her arm around his neck and shoulders only for Blake to wrap her arms around his stomach and the two of them stared glaring at one another.

Hell, Jaune could've sworn he saw colored lighting sparking between them.

Whatever, he never could understand women and their rivalries between them.

"Well Noodle Boy, YOU AND I are pretty much stuck here for the summer. Why don't we go and explore? Maybe we'll find something badass." said Yang, tugging on his left arm and oulling him away. Only for Blake to grab hold of his right arm and tugging on it.

"No, I think Jaune wants to find a quiet place to read. WITH ME." said Blake.

Pretty soon the two girls were having a tug-o-war match and using Jaune as the rope. Only the danger wasn't falling into a mud pit or pool filled with electric eels. It was Jaune's arms being pulled from their sockets.

"Enough!" he shouted, getting the girls' attention. "Before the two of you effectively pull my arms from thei sockets, how about you both let me go and I can go for a "walk"." said Jaune.

The girls thought about this for a moment before both coming to the same answer.

"No." said Yang/Blake. And the two of them went right back into playing tug-o-war with Jaune's arms.

Until when out of the woods came a Beowolf!

The girls had only just started their own training but were still to green to do anything more than hide behind Jaune, who quickly took a stance against the beast.

The two of them engaged in a stare down before the Beowolf lunged at them.

And as the black beast lunged toward them with it's maw open to recieve them a mysterious red light appeared on it's snout.

And with instinct he'd gained throughout his years, Jaune grabbed the two girls and ducked just in time for a red laser to shoot past them and cutting the Beowolf in half, leaving only a half seared corpse in it's wake.

The three of them looked up to see...DAVID!?

And in his arms was a massive device, it's exit ports smoking from excess heat and the head of the device seemed to be cooling down, no doubt from just being fired.

"Are you all alright!?" David exclaimed, rushing to their side. "I swear I thought we had the area secured. This one must've gotten past our perimeter. I'm so sorry." said the man, no loing having a goofy grin but a look of genuine worry.

"We're fine, David. Thank you." said Jaune, getting another look of David.

Perhaps he had judged him to harshly.

In the kind of world they lived in, it was sometimes a good thing to have optimistic people to remind that the world isn't so bad.

"Good, now let's back to camp and along the way we can start singing the Camp Campbell anthem!" said a returned joyous David.

Then again...maybe not.

"OHHHHH~ There's a place I know that's tucked away; A place where you and I can stay. Where we can go to laugh and play, and have adventures everyday! I know it sounds hard to believe but guys and gals it's true, Camp Campbell is the place for me and you!" sung David.

"Please stop." begged Jaune.

"We'll swim through lakes and climb up tress; catch fish, bugs, bears, and honeybees! There's endless possiblities and no; that's hyperbole!" he sung some more, stopping Blake from raising her hand to point out the obvious hyperbole.

"Our motto's "CAMPE DIEM" and that means I'm telling you~" sung David, reaching the climax.

"We've got; archery, hiking, search & rescue, biking, horseback, training that will save you from a heart attack, scuba diving, miming, keeping up with rhyming, football, limbo, science, stunting, pre-calc, spaceships, treasure hunting, bomb defusal, no refusal, fantasy, circus trapeze, and fights, and ghosts, and paints, and snakes, and knives, and chess, and dance, and weights-"

"IT'S CAMP CAMP!" he finished and just in time to be knocked out by Jaune, who was holding the large laser over his shoulder.

This going to be a fucking pain in the ass isn't it?" he asked to no one in particular.

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 **Greetings everyone and there you have it, my first Gun X RWBY Chibi omake! Hope you all enjoyed it. Obviously I won't be putting these up with every chapter or with every episode but they will appeare every now and again. Nothing new to add but I hope you're all enjoying the story so far.**

 **Till next time!**


	7. A Beast Awakens in Kuroyuri

**Greetings everyone! Whelp, today is the day and it's time for A-Nother chapter of Gun X RWBY. And it's the moment you've all been waiting for, that chapter Jaune discovers his semblance! I'll be giving full credit to those that came forward with their idea at the end of the chapter, along with an Author's Note. Now you all know the game, so get to readin'! Till next time!**

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Chapter Seven

It'd been just a few days since the father and son duo boarded a transport ship for Mistral. Orville had been excited to finally spend time with his son and was almost constantly regaling him with tales of the Arcs' numerous heroics throughout history.

One such tale was the story of Sir Albus Arcus-Drakos, or more commonly referred to as "The White Arc-Dragon", the first of the Arcs and the man who lead humanity against the first wave of Grimm. Orville spoke of him as if he had met the man, despite the fact that Albus had died many, many, years ago on the field of battle. He said that Albus was a man who stood at a hieght of 7 feet, with muscles the size of mountains, and with a piercing gaze from his blazing blue eyes, it was said that Albus had the power to vanquish an army of Grimm with nothing but a single swing of his blade. A blade so powerful that it had been passed down the Arcs' bloodline for eons, a blade whose name would slice through the bravery of those that faced it, Crocea Mors, the "Yellow Death".

Of course, it was all just a story meant for children and Jaune could understand why Orville chose to tell him such a tale but after everything he'd been through as a mercenary, nothing, and I mean NOTHING, could surprise him at this point.

Suddenly the ship carrying them was thrown off course, throwing most everyone from their seats as a small series of explosions rocked the ship's outer hull.

"Why does the universe hate me?" Jaune asked no one, when a white stinger-like hook punctured the wall behind him, nearly missing him by a hair.

The ship was under attack, but by what?

"We're under attack by Lancers!" shouted some random bystander.

"What the fuck is a lancer!?" thought Jaune as Orville sliced through the stinger near Jaune, a screech being heard as the Lancer outside flew away.

Orville kneeled beside his son, holding his shoulders, his face filled with worry. "Jaune! Are you alright?" asked Orville.

"I'm alright but we need to save the ship before something bad happens." said Jaune, surprising his father with his calmness in the situation.

But Orville knew his son was right, he needed to help and get rid of the Lancers outside. And so after standing tall in front of his son, Orville gave his son a small smirk, "Just you watch, Jaune. Papa's going to make those Lancers wish they'd never mess with the Arcs." said Orville, running to the exit hatch of the ship to get outside.

Meanwhile Jaune was taking a look around as the ship continued to shake from the Lancers' attacks. Several of the passengers were frantic and frightened by the attacks, screaming and crying as the attacks became more and more frequent.

"We're all going to die!" shouted one man.

"I knew this would happen!" shouted a distraught woman.

"Mommy! What's happening?" cried a little girl, who has being held by her crying mother.

"It's okay, sweetie. It'll all be over soon...I love you so much." said the mother.

Jaune's teeth gritted together, as he looked above, to where the battle was going on.

"Damn it, Orville. What the hell is taking so long?" he asked himself. "At this rate, this ship and it's passengers will end up splattered on the ground before long."

After a few more punctures in the ship's hull and more screams from the passengers, Jaune decided it was high time he went topside to see what was going on. And by the god of whatever, it was like jumping out of the frying pan and into an oven filled with fire-resistant wasps!

And there standing in front of him was Orville, kneeling on his right leg while trying to block the various stinger attacks from the Lancers.

Throwing on his "child persona" Jaune ran towards his father, "DAD!" he shouted, getting his father's attention, who turned with a look of shock and surprise.

"Jaune! What are you doing here!?" he exclaimed. "Jaune, listen to me, get below deck! And whatever you do, don't let anyone above!" shouted Orville, pushing his son back from him, before taking his battle stance.

Instead of asking questions, Jaune ran back below deck. Whatever Orville had planned he'd better do it fast.

And as the cabin filled with screams, and screeches, suddenly a bright white light consumed everyone and the ship with the screeches from the Lancers filling the sky.

And when the screeches died so did the light that consumed them and the ship.

Slowly, the passengers stumbled to their feet and walked cautiously towards the exit and as Jaune pushed the hatch open what he saw next was an amazing show of skill. The ship and the Lancers were coated in a golden aura, locking them in place. And kneeling in the middle of the ship was an exhausted Orville.

Quickly, Jaune rushed towards the downed man.

"Dad, what's wrong?" asked Jaune.

"Heh, nothing major Jaune. Just some light exhaustion from using my semblance." said a heavy-breathing Orville.

"Yeah and taking on a swarm of giant bugs." said Jaune, snapping his father out of his funk before he began to chuckle.

"I suppose so." said Orville, standing up to look over the passengers. "Everyone, please listen closely. What you're all seeing is my semblance at work but the effect will not last long. We need some way to contact help because as soon as my semblance wears off this ship will start to plummet."

"There's a nearby docking station, if we can somehow get word out to them to send help then there's a possiblity of us being rescued." said the captain of the ship.

"How far is the docking station?" Orville asked.

"Should be a few clicks out from Kuroyuri." said the captain.

"Kuroyuri, you say. If that's the case then perhaps we won't need to wait as long. Does anyone have a working scroll? Unfortunately mine was smashed by one of the Lancers." asked Orville.

Several hands raised, each with a scroll in hand. After borrowing one from one woman, Orville started inputting a number, the silver scroll rang to life as a mysterious man with black and grey hair tied back into a ponytail with a matching goatee and light green eyes.

The man's eyes widened at the face of Orville before a ghost smile appeared on his lips. His deep accent reminding Jaune of the warriors of Japan's past.

"Orville, it's been too long." said the man.

"That it has, Li." said Orville, smiling at the man, named Li.

"You are lucky, I almost decided not to answer when I saw the unknown number." said Li.

"Well, I'm glad you did, because I require your help." said Orville, getting serious.

"What do you require, my friend?" asked Li.

"The ship we were on was attacked by a swarm of Lancers and we're in pretty bad shape. I'm keeping every at bay with my semblance but it won't last long. There's a docking station nearby but we have no way of contacting them." said Orville.

"Say no more. I'll make haste and be there with help." said Li, hoisting a quiver of arrows over his back.

"Stay safe, Li." said Orville.

"You as well, Orville." said Li, ending the call.

Sighing, Orville thanked the woman for her scroll and handed it back to her. "Alright, everyone! An ally of mine is headed towards the docking station to get help. My semblance should remain active for up to 4 hours. So until then everyone start gathering your things because as soon as the ship gets back we're going to need to book it. Understand?" asked Orville, to which the passengers and crew nodded their head in agreement.

After a few minutes of the passengers and crew gathering their things, Jaune sat next to his father, who was sweating from his semblance's extension.

"Dad, are you alright?" Jaune asked, genuinely worried about him.

"I'm alright, Jaune. Just using my semblance takes a lot out of me." said Orville.

"What is your semblance?" he asked, curious about the ins and outs of Orville's semblance.

"My semblance is called "Golden Hour". Needless to say, it allows me to instantly freeze anything or anyone in my vicinity. The problem is that the longer I use, the more of a toll it takes on me. But it's nothing to be worried about, I've held my semblance for much longer before. This is nothing." Orville bragged, laughing to hide the pain and exhaustion he was going through.

Orville was anything but a good liar.

Jaune could tell that Orville wouldn't be able to hold his semblance for long.

He wished he could do something but with the way he was now, the most he'd be a short-lived distraction. And without any weapon of his own there was little he could do in terms of support.

It wasn't until a two hours had begun to past the Jaune realized that help wouldn't make it in time. Orville was about ready to pass out and the semblance was already beginning to wear off. There had to be something he could do...anything!

Jaune felt all of his frustrations and anger begin to boil inside of him, and like an overheated pot, his lid was about to burst.

But as Jaune began to run towards the nearest Lancer, Orville's semblance dissapating into nothingness, a lone arrow pierced the Lancer's side, killing it. And following the arrow was a series of ballistic bullets, mowing down the swarm and saving the ship, which luckily was being held by Orville's semblance.

The cheers of the crew and passengers filled the sky as rescue arrived just in time and stand at the nose of the ship, bow and arrow in hand was Li.

They'd been saved.

"It's about damn time." thought Jaune, smirking as the feeling he got before faded away.

Hours later, after getting everyone aboard the new transport ship, Li and the two Arcs were able to safely disembark and were now headed to the village of Kuroyuri, Li's home.

Li, after introducing himself as Li Ren, was a man who held the wisdom of many men. He believed that the worst action a man can make is inaction, something that Jaune agreed with fulheartedly. It had apparently been the cause of some mix up that Li and Orville had met. Both had been hired by the same man to "get rid" of the other. It had only taken them 16 hours of continous fighting to realize it. After such, the two joined together to take down their employer and have him arrested. The employer had been dealing in underground slave trading and knew that someone was investigating him, those being Li and Orville, and thought it best have them kill each other. Turns out it went as bad as it sounded.

Now the two were close allies and friends, often joining one another for missions whenever they were in the same area.

And right now, Orville was busy gushing over a picture of his seven daughters, while Li just looked on, smiling.

"And finally, this is my sweet little vixen, Chrome. We adopted her after finding her abandoned behind a dumpster. Isn't she cute?" asked Orville, smiling that same goofy smile he'd wear whenever he was talking about his daughters.

"Yes, she is very cute, Orville. But I was asking why it was you and your son were here." said Li, getting Orville to realize he'd gone off on a tangent.

"I figured it was high time the Arc men went out and explored. Get some real father-son bonding time. And I thought what better way to do it then to visit Mistral and meet my old friends. Speaking of which, last I heard you met a sweet little lady." said Orville, nudging Li with his elbow as a soft red blush came to his cheeks.

"Yes, I did. Her name is An. I met her when I had lost conciousness in the wilderness and she brought me back to health. I went weeks after and I couldn't stop thinking about her. I went back to her cabin and asked her to marry me." said Li, smiling at the memory.

"And let me guess, you pierced her heart with an arrow of love?" asked Orville, smirking as Li's blush grew before hitting Orville behind the head.

"Let's not forget that my arrow very nearly pierced your's when we first met." said Li, reminding Orville of their first fight.

But Orville couldn't resist teasing his old friend, "Oh, Li! I never knew you felt that way before. If I had known I would've raced through the Badlands just to be with you." said Orville, causing Li to frown and grumble.

"I hate you, Orville." said Li, laughing along with his friend.

And for Jaune, this all just reminded him of his time spent with Saalim. The two were almost inseperable until Saalim's accident, after that Jaune couldn't stand working with anyone else for the longest time. But the more jaune watched the two grown men joke about the more Jaune came to miss those days of his past.

"Orville, Jaune, welcome to my home, Kuroyuri." said Li, the two Arc men watching the beautiful scenary pass them boy. The villagers going about their day, merchants selling their items to passing people, and children racing past little rivers that ran through the village.

"It's been a while, hasn't it?" asked Orville, smiling.

"Yes, it has." Li agreed.

"Seems like just yesterday, we were racing through the badlands with a herd of Ursi on our tails. Good times." he said, smiling while Li frowned at him.

"You and I have very different definitions on "good times", Orville." said Li, before walking into the village and leading the two Arcs further.

About halfway through the walk, Jaune noticed something out of the corner of his eye. There, in the far corner between two buildings was a little boy with black hair with a magenta streak and wearing a green, black, and magenta long-sleeved shirt and white pants. The boy seemed to be watching something in front of him, luckily jaune was able to see what it was, a small group of boys were throwing rocks at a little girl, who was covered in dirt and holding half a loaf of bread.

Anger filled Jaune as he made a beeline for the group, the boy was the first to take notice of his approach but Jaune didn't pay him any mind and instead raced past to the group. And before the boys could throw another stone, Jaune came rushing in and caught the wrist, gripping it tightly and making the boy wince in pain, the stone falling to the ground.

The boy glared back at Jaune, but his glare soon became one of fear at the sight og Jaune's eyes, which glowed with a promise of death.

"Leave. Her. Alone." said Jaune, scaring the boys, who all began to run away but not before throwing one last rock at the little girl. But instead the rock hit Jaune cutting into his forehead as blood ran down to his cheek.

"Jaune!" shouted Orville, rushing towards his son and wrapping his muscular arms around him. "Jaune, are you alright? What happened?" asked Orville.

"Those boys were bullying this girl and I came to protect her, just like you." said Jaune, going back into "child persona".

Orville turned to look at the little girl, who cowering from the sudden appearance of the large mountain man. She was covered in dirt and grime and was holding loaf of bread. And to Orville, she reminded him of his little girls. So with cautious steps, Orville smiled at the little girl and held his hand out to her.

"Hey there, my name's Orville Arc. What's your's?" he asked.

"N-Nora..." she stuttered.

"Nora, huh? That's a beautiful name." said Orville, smiling. "What are you doing out here all by yourself?" he asked, causing Nora to form tears in the corners of her eyes.

And for Orville, this was all he needed to know and with love and care, the man pulled Nora into a hug. One that Nora returned back as she cried into Orville's shoulder.

Looking back to where the little boy was standing, Jaune noticed that Li was, not glaring at the boy but seemed almost disappointed in him.

A few minutes later, Li lead the small group back to his home. Apparently the little boy, who was watching the altercation was his son, Lie Ren. And after reaching the door to Li's home the door swung open to reveal a slender woman with light pink hair, and magenta eyes, she held in her hands a small dish towel. This must've been the An, Li had mentioned before.

"Li, you're back and you've brought some guests." said An

"Hello, dear. May we come in, These two need some...work. And you're the best I know." said Li, pushing both Jaune and Nora forward to his wife.

An, let out a gasp at the sight of Jaune's forehead cut and the grime on Nora's face. "Oh, come in, come in, you two. I'll get you both fixed up right away. Li, I went ahead and made some Oolong tea, please have some and make sure your friend has some as well." she commanded, making Li smile and nod.

The mother then took the two of them to the bedroom, where she then drew a nice, hot, bath for Nora before getting out her first aid kit for Jaune. "You must've been worried about your little sister, huh?" she asked, causing Jaune to grow a look of disappointment.

"Nora's...not my little sister. She was being bullied by some boys outside and I ran to stop them, got hurt doing so, too." said Jaune.

"Oh. well, that was very brave thing to do. I'm sure she appreciates it. Sometimes being a hero is hard work and you don't always get a thank you." said An, frowning.

"Being a hero isn't about getting approval and rewards. It's about doing what's right." said Jaune, a little bit of older personality coming out, which caused An to smile.

"You sound just like my husband. He never cared about rewards or fame. The only thing he'd care about is making sure everyone was happy. He's a...a difficult man, always so serious and collected...but there are days like today where I see him smile and I know that I love him." she said, blushing after realizing she had begun to ramble. "Oh, listen to me, boring you about my love life. Anyway, you're all fixed up, why don't you go back to dinning room with the other men while Nora and I get cleaned up." said An, sending Jaune back out.

The little mercenary walked through the house until he came upon the dinning room, which was stylised just like an eastern dinning room, complete with cushions for sitting and a small table to sit at.

but when comparing the size of a mountain man like Orville to a tiny table, the results were humorous to say the least. Hell, jaune couldn't help but laugh at the sight of Orville with the table pushed above his legs causing it to tilt.

"That's right, laugh your old man." said Orville, smiling at his laughing son.

"Sorry dad, didn't know you decided to bring Violet's old tea party set." Jaune joked, causing Orville to laugh harder.

"You always did have a smart mouth, didn't you?" joked Orville.

"What can I say? I learned it from Clementine and Jazz." said Jaune, before noticing that Li and Lie where gone. "Where's-" he started to asked before being cut off by Orville.

"Li said he was going to do one last perimeter sweep and Lie is in his bedroom. Boy's feeling pretty down since this afternoon. Why don't you go and give him a little chat. You always did have a knack for making people smile, must be that Arc Charm coursing through you." said Orville, smiling and pointing to Lie's room.

Seeing this as his chance to learn more about the Ren family, jaune headed over to Lie's room, knocking on it until a soft voice echoed through the door, "Who is it?" asked Lie.

"It's Jaune, can I come in?" he asked.

"Oh...okay, sure." said Lie, waiting for Jaune to enter.

Once he did, Jaune took notice of how utterly clean the room was. A decent change from the mountains of dirty laundry and spilled beauty products and stuff in his sisters' rooms.

"You must be Lie. I'm Jaune, it's nice to meet you." he introduced himself, holding his hand out to Lie.

But Lie seemed apprehensive and instead chose to nod at Jaune.

"I..um...prefer Ren. Only my mother and father call me Lie." said Ren.

Jaune smiled and kept his hand out. "Alright, Ren it is then."

A few seconds go by as Ren looks at the outstretched hand with caution before clasping his hand over Jaune's. The two shake before Ren takes his place at his bed and Jaune leans against the wall.

The silence become to much and Ren opens his mouth to speak. "Why did you save that girl?" asked Ren.

"Nora, and it's because it was the right thing to do." said Jaune.

"But weren't you scared? Weren't you afraid of getting hurt?" he asked.

And for someone like Jaune, being afraid was something you couldn't afford to be when out in the field. You couldn't second guess yourself, you couldn't hesitate, and you didn't have the luxury of worrying about being hurt. But a kid like ren wouldn't understand that, so jaune would have to choose his words carefully.

"Yeah, I was scared. I knew that I would get hurt if I helped." said Jaune.

"Then why did you help her?" Ren asked, once more.

"I was more afraid of her getting hurt." said Jaune, shocking Ren, who began to wonder.

It wasn't until Jaune placed his hand on Ren's shoulder that ren looked up at him.

"Sometimes, being brave isn't about having no fear, but rising above it." said Jaune, smiling at Ren. "And I know that one day, you'll have the strength to rise above it all."

"R-Really?" asked Ren.

"Yeah. Now come on, I'm sure Nora's about done with her bath." said Jaune, walking towards the door, only for Ren to grab his wrist and causing him to stop his movement.

"B-But what if she hates me? O-Or is scared of me? Or-" Ren began, before being cut off.

"Stop it." commanded Jaune.

Ren's mouth shuts closed.

"If you really believe that, then apologize to her. And if worst comes to worst, just let her hit you. Trust me, sometimes the best apology you can give someone is letting them deck you." said Jaune, laughing as Ren's face becomes pale.

Luckily, ren didn't become Nora's personal punching bag that night but they were able to learn more about her instead. Her full name was Nora Valkyrie and she was an orphan, her own village had been attacked by Grimm and she was barely able to escape with her life. She'd been wandering ever since, starving and dirty from the travel when she happened upon Kuroyuri.

After which An, decided to make a nice meal for the children which they all scarfed down their gulets.

The sky darkened outside, turning day into dusk. The family laughed and laughed until it was time to send the kids to bed. The children decided to sleep in Ren's room as a sort of "sleepover".

But much like the saving grace of daylight, their fun would not last forever.

Screams and roars filled the village, Jaune was the first to jolt awake, he looked out the window to see dark, bellowing, smoke rise to the sky like a skyscraper. The villagers racing through the streets as dark bird-like shadows followed the suit.

Suddenly, the door to the room swung open, An was shaken with fear but held firm as Nora and Ren woke from their slumber.

"Lie, Nora, Jaune, get up. we have to go." said An, her shaking becoming more prominent.

"Mother?" asked a sleepy Ren.

"Where are we going?" asked Nora, frowning.

"What's going on, An?" asked Jaune, growing serious.

"There isn't much time, we have to go, now." she commanded, holding the door open as the children rushing into the hallway. Suddenly, the door to the kitchen bursts open as a heavily-breathing Li and Orville rush in.

"Li!" shouted An.

"An, what are you doing?! We need to hurry!" Li shouted.

"We can go to the safehouse!" she shouted back.

"No can do, I'm afraid. Safehouse was demolished when we ran by. Grimm are swarming the streets and the negativity from the people are just going to bring more. We have to leave, now." said Orville, gripping crocea Mors in his right hand and hoisting the shield in his left.

"What?" asked a terrified An.

A terrifying roar echoes through the village as the thundering of it's movement headed towards them. The ceiling above them creaks with stress, causing them look up.

"Mother?" asked a cowering Ren.

"It's happening again." cried Nora.

An, slowly wrapped her arms around the two of them, holding them close before pulling away. "It's okay, darlings. Everything is okay." said An, just before the ceiling broke away falling towards them.

"An!" shouted Li as the debris fell towards his family.

But just in the nick of time, Orville appears, catching the massive wooden beam on his back, a piece of wood puncturing his arm and causing it to bleed.

Li watched as Orville single-handedly rescued his family.

"Li, get An and the children out of here!" Orville commanded.

"Right! An, get the children!" shouted Li, grabbing his wife and taking her and the kids outside as Orville pushing the beam off his back and using his semblance to freeze the wound in time. It wouldn't be much but it'd be enough to last until he could get it properly fixed up.

Swiftly, Orville raced outside and towards the group, who had already begun running opposite of the Grimm. Finally, Li took notice of Orville before facing his family. "An, take the children and run. Go to the docking station." Li commanded.

"Father? Where are you going? You're coming with us, right?" asked Ren.

"Lie, you must be brave now, for your mother and for Nora." said Li, handing Ren his knife.

"Li." spoke An.

"No, I-I can't!" shouted Ren.

"Yes, you can! You are brave, son. And you must do this, for me." said Li, standing and hefting his bow, facing An. "I will stay and draw the beast's attention."

"Well, don't be thinking you're going to have all the fun." said Orville, placing a hand on Li's shoulder.

"No, Orville, you must go with them. With this, I'll be able to buy you all some time." said Li, looking downcast but serious.

"Then I can double that." said Orville, smirking at his friend before looking at his son. "Jaune, take them and lead them to the docking station."

"Alright, but don't you die on me old man. Mom will kill you if you do." said Jaune, making his father smile.

"You always were a smart ass." said Orville, standing tall.

The roars of the beast echoed once more, drawing their attention back towards the smoldering village. The shadow of the beast barely visible through the smoke.

"Go!" shouted Li as he and Orville rushed toward the beast.

And An took the children's hands and raced off to the entrance of the village, their legs carrying them as fast as they could. And just as the group was about to reach the safe haven of the woods, their hopes were dashed away as a massive beringel landed in front of them with thud, creating a miniature crater due to it's weight. The group began to cower in fear, Jaune looked back to where Li and Orville were but knew that neither would be able to help them as it would mean that the other would end up dead.

And that pissed Jaune off.

Why had it happened this way? They had done nothing to warrant this kind of fate. The Ren family were a quiet family only looking to make a happy life for themselves. All of the hell Nora's gone through and even after she had finally found something worth cherishing, this shit happens? And what about Orville, all the man wanted was to spend a nice vacation with his son, is that so wrong!?

And what about Jaune?

He had given his life for his allies. For them to continue living in peace and have a happy life. And just when it had all seemed alright, the world shits him out into a new one, complete with superpowered beings, demonic monsters, and even more shit! Jaune had had it with this, he had kept his cool long enough!

And as the Beringel's massive arms dove torwards them, An pulled Nora and Ren into her arms, holding them close in hopes of protecting them, a thought occured to Jaune.

In life, everyone has a bucket. Each bucket is specially made for each bucket. Some are big, some are small, and some are mishapen. And in each of these buckets is Life's shit. And sooner of later, one of those buckets will topple over and spill shit back out into life.

And by god, was Jaune tired of Life's endless shitting in his bucket.

The Beringel's arms landed with a lud, echoeing throughout the village. But the Beringel couldn't feel the broken bones and mashed flesh of it's victims. Instead, the Beringel felt something grasp it's forearms and with a strength of a Goliath threw the massive Beringel into the sky. It's red eyes finding it's attacker in the crater it had created. Dark blood-red markings ran across it's darkened body, with red eyes, and wild white hair. The Beringel blinks it's red eyes and suddenly the attacker was gone, only for a force befitting a nosediving Nevermore to kick the Beringel back down into the crater, the force causing it to expand further.

An, stared wide eyed as the Beringel reached out to her almost pleading her to save it. But just as the Beringel opened it's mouth to speak, it's massive head was squashed beneath the feet of Jaune!

The boy that stood before her was not the little boy she had met just hours earlier. His eyes were no longer crystal blue but crimson red. His hair was not a tamed mesh of blonde but a wild white. His skin wasn't pale white but a darkened brown with blood red markings crawling across his bod, almost as if the markings were alive. And only now did An realize that Jaune had awakened his semblance.

"J-Jaune?" she asked, getting Jaune's attention. His beast-like red eyes staring into her soul as the markings on his body began shifting towards his arms. The marks extended past his forarms and hardening to a point, creating blades.

And then, he spoke. "Kill. Must. Kill. Enemies. Must. Kill...GRIMM!" he shouted with a roar before the markings on his body shifted once more becoming a set of bloody red wings. The boy took off into the sky and began attacking the flying Nevermores. Cutting their wings one-by-one and causing the massive ravens to plummet to the ground. Then he divebombed towards a pack of Beowolves, the markings shifting into bladed tendrils before he became a twister of blood and blades. The Grimm were nothing but helpless prey to this boy as he weaved in and out of the approaching Grimm.

But An had not been paying attention to her surroundings as an Ursa had reached them, standing on it's hind legs and ready to claw at them, only for a red bladed tendril to pierce it's body, with Jaune flying towards it, cutting the beast in half. It was only then that she realized she'd been surprisingly calm throughout the ordeal. She wasn't scared, sad, or angered. No, instead she felt calm.

"Mother?" asked Ren, looking up at her.

"Lie, y-you discovered your semblance." said An.

"I-I did?" he asked, stunned.

"Yes, my darling. Now, we must get to safety." said An, gathering up Ren and Nora.

"But what about Jaune?" asked Nora.

"Jaune will be fine. He's protecting us, but we must go." said An, taking the two children underneath an undamaged house.

Along the way, Ren grabbed a small wooden hammer off of the ground and handed it to Nora.

The trinket somehow making her comfortable.

And there, the group watched as Jaune continued fighting wave after wave of Grimm.

"KILL!" Jaune shouted into the sky, his tendrils slicing at any Grimm that dared to step close to them.

Eventually the courtyard was littered with the fading corpses of fallen Grimm, leaving only one.

Orville fell to his knees, his semblance taking it's toll as his wounds began to open up. And by his view of Li, the archer was fairing to well too. At this rate, they'll both end up dead. The Grimm before him faced him, it's front hooves poised to crush him. And Orville felt his eyes begin to close, ready for the battle to end. He sent a silent prayer to Iris, to his girls, and to Jaune. It would be difficult but he knew they'll get by without him.

"I love you all." said Orville, lowering his head to await his fate.

Only his fate hadn't come.

Slowly, his eyes opened and there holding the beast's massive hooves with his bare hands was Jaune.

But what had happened to his son?

Why was his body dark?

Why were his eyes red?

Why was his hair white?

And why were there moving marks on his body?

"Jaune? What happened to you?" Orville asked, staring at his son, who kept the beast's hooves in his grip.

Yet Jaune didn't speak.

The markings on his body began to shift and fuse, eventually meeting together and escaping off his body, forming into a large pincer on his lower back, the plates moving as if it was a living organism before thrusting into the body of the beast. It's wails echoed through the sky, causing many of them to cover their ears. And yet Jaune did not. Instead choosing to hold his place as the pincer thrusted more and more into the beast's horse-like body before severing it's four legs and toppling to the ground with a thud.

The beast raised it's arms only to be sliced off as well by a set of arm blades. It released another series of wails, the surrounding Grimm began to flee back into the wilderness. The many villagers hiding crawled from their safety and started to gather around, watching a little boy holding onto the head of the beast that had attacked their home.

The markings shifting closer and closer towards the beast's head before wrapping around it's neck and crushing it in it's grips. The boy ripped the head off and held it above as the body faded away.

The surviving villagers of Kuroyuri let out a resounding cheer.

Their home had been saved.

And just as Jaune's appearance began to fade away back to normal, his body collapsed to the ground, the markings fading into nothing but faint scars.

Quickly, Orville rushed to his son's side, holding him in his arms. "Jaune? Jaune?! Someone get help!" he shouted, the distant sound of rescue closing in.

"Jaune!"

"Jaune!.."

"Jaune.!."

"Jaune..!"

But Orville's voice faded into nothing, leaving only darkness and silence.

Darkness had become something that Jaune took comfort in. There was no light, showing him a way out, there were no noise telling him he was surrounded. Nothing but silence and the comfort of darkness.

"Why are you like this?" asked a voice.

"Like what?" Jaune asked back.

"Like this! You're more than this, you're the master rank of Mikado High! You're the demon drill sergeant! You're the infamous little boy!" the voice shouted.

"Not anymore. Those names died along with Morito." said Jaune.

"You are Morito!" the voice continued to shout.

"No, I'm not. I'm Jaune Arc, son of Orville and Iris Arc." said Jaune, looking at his hand.

"Fine, add it to the list of names you've gotten. The point is you can't escape who you truly are, Morito." said the voice.

"And who am I?" asked Jaune.

"My little Yassen." said the voice.

Jaune's eyes widened in shock.

His master was here.

Sayuri was here!

"How?" he asked.

"Same as you, kiddo. Turns out your little clover girl had a bit more fight in her than I thought." said Sayuri.

"What happened to them? Is everyone alright?" Jaune asked.

"Yes, yes, all of your kids and friends are fine. But I've gotta say kiddo, you definitely surprised me today." said Sayuri.

"What?" he asked.

"I saw your little "episode" and I have to say, you have got something special." she spoke, giggling.

"How? How did you see me?" asked Jaune.

"Why, morito, didn't you know that it's rude to ask a girl such a question? I thought I raised you better than that." said Sayuri.

"Answer me!" he shouted.

"Fine, fine. Geez, you always were such a killjoy. You see, after waking up in this new world I learned a thing or two. The first was that much like our world, there were people with supernatural abilities. The second was that in this world, every lie started with a truth. And the third, I've been around for a very, very, VERY, long time, Morito. Perhaps much longer than you have. And in those years I have gained, somewhat of a following. I've even gotten another little protege. Oh, I do hope they turn out much better than you did." said Sayuri.

"Where are you?" he asked.

"Now, now, kiddo. You and I both know that with the way you are now, you wouldn't last a second against me. But I'll tell you what, I'll give you...let's say 10 years to gather enough strength and allies to face against me. If I win, then you join me and I get to erase your memory of everything." said Sayuri.

"And if I win?" he asked.

"Why Morito, isn't it obvious? If you win then you won't have to watch me slaughter everything and everyone you love right in front of you." said Sayuri.

"Jaune~" said another voice.

"Well, looks like our little chat had been cut short. I look forward to seeing you grow, Morito." said Sayuri, as a bright light began to consume Jaune.

His eyes burst open, catching a wrist the appeared in front of him, spooking the Nurse, whose wrist it belonged to.

"S-Sorry..." Jaune apologized.

"Oh, it's okay, sweetie. It's understandable after going through what you just did." said the Nurse.

"What? What are you talking about?" Jaune asked.

"You don't remember?" the Nurse asked.

"Remember what?" he demanded.

"It might be better if I explain it to him." said Orville, standing in the hospital room's doorway.

"Dad, what happened? What did I do?" Jaune asked, becoming more and more distraught.

"Relax, Jaune. Calm down. I promise you that nothing is wrong. But I do need to explain somethings." said Orville, calming Jaune down.

"Alright. Okay, I'm calm." said Jaune, sitting in his hospital bed.

"Jaune, I believe you've awakened your semblance." said Orville.

"My semblance?" he asked.

"Yes, and from what I've seen it's an ability unlike anything I've ever seen. You were stronger, faster, ferocious. The Grimm became little more than play things for you. Your hair turned as white as a snowstorm, and your eyes became red...like the Grimm. And what's more is that you had these "markings" on your body that seemed to be moving. Always shifting and fusing together before being pulled apart and then they took the form of weapons. You grew wings, you created body armor, you made tendrils and turned an entire courtyard of Grimm into pieces of discarded trash. But after all was said and done, when your "form" faded away...you...you died." said Orville.

"What?" Jaune asked.

"You died, Jaune. I held you in my arms as the light faded from your eyes and you just...died." said Orville.

"I...died..." said Jaune, slowly realizing what it meant.

"Jaune, I want you to promise me that you will NEVER use that semblance again. Promise me that, Jaune. Please." Orville begged his son.

But Jaune knew better, he couldn't make that promise to Orville.

At least not as long as his master is still alive.

He couldn't take it easy any longer.

He had to get stronger as fast as possible.

So Jaune looked into his father's eyes, blue meeting blue.

"I can't promise that, dad. I realized today that I need to get stronger in order to protect those close to me and I can't do that if I don't master my semblance. If you want me to not have to use my semblance then I must get strong enough to where I won't have to use it." said Jaune, his determination causing Orville to sigh.

"I understand, son. If this is what you truly want then I think I know someone, who can help us. But it won't be easy. She's never been one to...take it easy on anyone and there's a big chance that you could end up hurt beyond repair. Are you sure about this, Jaune?" Orville asked, hoping his son would turn away and say no.

But alas, his wishes would not be met.

"Yes, I'm sure." said Jaune.

Orville sighed, holding his patched up shoulder before standing up. "Alright, if that's the case. Then we should get ready to go. We'll want to hurry before she leaves for another mission and you'll want to tell the others goodbye." said Orville, leaving the room and leaving Jaune to get dressed.

And when Jaune stepped out that door of the hospital the last thing he expected to see was a horde of people fixing up the village and even less when said horde began crowding around him screaming cheers and compliments his way. The shock was so strong that it took the force of Nora tackling him to wake him up from his shock.

"Jaune! You're okay!" the little ginger shouted with glee.

"Nora? What's going on?" he asked.

"They're here for you! You're a hero!" she said, smiling as Ren joined them.

"A hero? But how?" asked Jaune.

"After you turned into...um..."that" all of the monsters came at you and that save a bunch of people. Then you went all POW! And WHAM! And WAPOW!" shouted Nora.

"It's true, Jaune." said Li, walking up the steps of the hospital with An in tow.

Li then kneeled to one knee, a scar over his left eye. "You have not only saved my home but my family as well. And I will forever be in your debt." said Li, bowing his head.

"So, how do you feel, son, knowing you've single-handedly save these people?" asked Orville.

"I didn't do it to be recognized. I did it because it was the right thing to do." said Jaune, making his father smile.

"You truly are your father's son, Jaune." said Li, smiling as An kneeled down to hug Jaune, whispering "Thank you."

After 30 minutes of Jaune being crowded by his "fans" the crowd slowly dissapated as they went back to fixing their village.

The two Arcs were walking towards the entrance of the village and there waiting for them were Li, An, Ren, and Nora.

The little ginger girl ran up to Jaune, holding her wooden hammer in her hands, followed by Ren. "You're leaving?" she asked.

"Yeah, I have to if I want to get stronger." said Jaune, placing his hand on her head before she decided to wrap her arms around him.

"Jaune, you taught me that it's alright to be afraid, that bravery comes from being able to stand above your fear to protect those you love. I swear that I'll get stronger and braver and I'll make you proud." said Ren, gripping his father's knife in his hands.

Jaune placed a hand on Ren's shoulder, smirking at him. "Then I look forward to seeing how strong you get, Ren."

Meanwhile, Orville was talking with Li and An.

"What are you going to do about Nora?" asked Orville.

"Well, we've been talking about it and we've decided on something." said An, smiling at the children.

"Nora, please come here." said Li, motioning for the children to come closer. After which, An then kneeled down to meet Nora's eyes.

"Nora, Li and I have been talking and we wanted to ask you something." said An.

"What is it?" she asked.

"Nora, would you like to stay here, with us?" An asked, shocking Nora, whose eyes widened.

"R-Really?" she asked, on the border of crying.

"Yes, Nora. We'd be honored if you were to stay with us." said Li, smiling at her.

And without asking, Nora threw herself at the two adults, crying into their bodies with Ren soon joining them.

And so the Ren family gained a new arrival and the village of Kuroyuri was saved from the onslaught of Grimm.

And all due to the actions of one blonde-headed boy.

But his journey was far from over.

Now, it was time Jaune met Orville's rival.

Miltiades Nikos, the red-headed amazon of Mistral.

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 **Greetings, once again, everyone! Sayuri's back and she's better than ever. What does this mean for our resident lil' mercenary? Will he be able to gather the strength to finally put his master's evil to an end? And just which girl will he end up with? Well, how the fuck should I know, we ain't even at Beacon yet. But let's get down to business, Jaune/Morito has discovered his semblance. Which means it time to announce the lucky few, who came up with the idea.**

 **Let's give a happy congratulations to:**

 **raitozric.**

 **AndyScull.**

 **ZonZus.**

 **and adislt.**

 **And I threw in a little something extra to spice it up.**

 **And the name of this semblance will be known as "Scars" as a constant reminder that the past will always behind you and that no matter how fast you run or how far you go or even if you make a new life for yourself.**

 **Seemed fitting.**

 **Whelp, till next time!**


	8. The Temple of Nikos

**Greetings everyone! Did you all have a great week? I hope you did, cause it's time to start another awesome week with everybody's favorite Lil' Merc.**

 **Till next time!**

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Chapter Eight

It's been four days since the events in Kuroyuri and the Arc men were making their way through the mountains of Mistral. Throughout the journey, they faced wave-after-wave of Grimm, ranging from Lancers to Nevermores to the occasional Widowers. But still they pressed onward up the mountain range, facing every beast head on with vim and vigor, until they came upon a magnificent monastery, it's architecture was a mix of Feudal Japan and Ancient Greek, as if the two cultures had merged just create this beautiful temple.

The two walked cautiously onto the temple grounds, with Orville keeping his weapon at the ready while Jaune used his ELS to gauge his surroundings. The two men walked further and further onto the temple grounds when a gust of wind struck the two men in the back, sending them tumbling forward. Getting their bearings, the two turned to see a figure dressed in bronze armor, it's piercing green eyes glaring at them like ferocious lioness as her waving red hair flowed in the breeze. In her right hand was a bronze trident and equipped on her left forearm was a miniature shield.

The sight of the woman had Orville sighing in annoyance and even more so when she opened her mouth.

"So, we meet again, Orville, my rival!" shouted the woman.

"For the last time, Miltia. We. Are. Not. Rivals!" he shouted back.

"Oh, Orville, you always were one for denial. Reminds me of our first bout of strength and how you'd always claim that you were the winner instead of me." said Miltiades.

"And you'd always insist that you aren't afrad of spiders but what happened when we faced that Madam Widower? Oh, that's right, you screamed so loudly you caused a cave in." said Orville, smirking as Miltiades puffed out her reddened cheeks.

"T-That's not what happened! Y-You were the one screaming like a infant!" she shouted, with no one believing her. Miltiades let out a massive huff before facing Orville. "Now, state your business here at the Temple of Nikos!"

"Temple of Nikos?" Jaune thought out loud and causing the armor-clad amazon to face him, her eyes widening.

"Orville, who is this?" she demanded.

"Miltia, this Jaune, my son. And we need your help." said Orville.

Miltiades thought for a moment before standing straight and watching the two men, closely. "What is it?" she asked.

Seeing this as his moment, Jaune stepped forward, hie blue eyes filled with determination.

"I need to get stronger and my father said that you may be able to help me achieve that. So, will you help me?" asked Jaune.

"No." said Miltiades, shocking both Orville and Jaune.

"Why?" asked Orville.

"He is not ready, the training would surely kill him. And I refuse to watch a child die because he tried to bite off more than he could chew." said Miltiades, turning her back to walk back into the temple when her senses went wild, causing her to face the little boy behind her.

His eyes filled with rage.

"W-What are you?" she asked.

Soon, blood red markings began to appear on his arms, legs, and face. But before it could continue any further, Orville placed a hand on his son's shoulder, calming him down just enough for the markings to fade away, leaving Jaune slightly winded.

"Miltiades, please. We need your help." pleaded Orville.

Just as Orville spoke these words, Miltiades kept her eyes on Jaune, that feeling she got never leaving her body.

His eyes were like that of a beast.

A beast far greater than anything she'd ever faced before.

Yes, he would do just nicely.

Slowly, a smile grew on her face as she removed her helmet.

"Very well, Orville, I will train your son and turn him into the finest warrior known to mankind! Ready yourself, boy, because by the time I'm through with you, you'll be strong enough to vanquish any evil in your sights!" boasted Miltiades.

Jaune felt a smile on his face as the amazonian woman faced him.

"Great, when do we start?" asked Jaune.

"Now!" she shouted, smiling.

"Wait, what?" asked Jaune, confused as Miltiades smacked him from the side and sending him into a nearby wall that lead to the temple's bathhouse.

A girl's shriek was heard throughout the mountain range.

But while Orville watched the boy-sized hole with widened eyes and open mouth, Miltiades sighed slightly annoyed.

"He was not ready" said Miltiades.

A shout range back through the wall.

"Mother, how many times have I asked that you not throw random people through the bathhouse wall?!" shouted a little girl.

At least Miltiades had the decency to blush from embarrassment.

"Sorry, sweetie!" she shouted back.

And that began the start of Jaune's hellish training at the hands of Miltiades Nikos, the Amazon of Mistral.

For the next few days, Jaune was under constant attacks from the derranged woman, who used every opprotunity to attack him.

And while jaune posessed the knowledge to protect himself and counter the crazy woman's attacks. His body wasn't strong enough to do so without relying on his semblance, which was something that he couldn't allow to happen.

So he endured as best as he could until Miltiades's stomach rumbled with hunger.

"You're lucky she's taking it easy on you." said Orville.

"WHAT PART OF ANY OF THIS IS "TAKING IT EASY"?!" shouted Jaune.

It's been like this for several days.

Sometimes Miltiades would chase after him with her trident.

And others the two would engage in close quarters combat.

And slowly, but surely, Jaune could feel his original strength come back to him little-by-little and eventually he was able to hold of the deranged amazon's atacks much longer than before and even surprise her with a perfect counter attack from time to time.

The week had finally ended and Miltiades declared that it was time for Jaune to face an opponent more on his level to shawcase just how far he had come.

And walking out of the temple's double doors, dressed in a makeshift armor, sword and shield, was Pyrrha Nikos, Miltiades's daughter.

The little girl smiled at the two men, waving her hand at them. "Hello again." said Pyrrha.

"Hi Pyrrha, I didn't know your mother was training you too." said Orville.

"There's alot of things you don't know, Orville." said Miltiades, smirking as she walked over to her daughter's side. "This will be the first of five one-on-one matches that you two will engage in through the course of your stay. Both fighters will be given a series of weapons and armor for each match, with the last being pure unarmed combat. For your first match, both fighters will be using wooden armor, sword, and shield. The first, whose Aura reaches the red will be the loser. Are both fighters ready?" asked Miltiades, gesturing to both children.

"Yes/Yes" said both fighters, readying their weaponry and facing each other head on.

A hand rose and stayed for a moment before falling to the ground followed by a shout.

"Begin!" shouted Miltiades.

Both fighters charged at one another, with Pyrrha, swinging her wooden sword to meet Jaune's own.

They engage in a power struggle with Jaune, gaining the upper hand as he slipped his left leg in between Pyrrha's own into order to trip her up and sending her to the ground.

But Pyrrha was quick to act as she rolled back onto her feet and managed to block Jaune's next swipe at her.

But his attack only chained into a flurry of swipes and slashes at her shield before she finally pushed against him and throwing him back a bit.

Pyrrha smiled at her opponent, eager to face someone that she could go all out against. She then charge at him, keeping her shield raised to protect her only for Jaune to jump onto her back and with a massive push sent the little amazon sprawling to the floor.

Standing back up, Pyrrha somehow managed to block another oncoming attack from Jaune and using her semblance was able to latch onto the metal in his chest plate and tossing back a fair bit.

But Jaune was already prepared and using his newfound momentum was able to latch onto a nearby pole and ricochet himself back at her, using his shield as both protection and a weapon and crashing into Pyrrha's body, sending the two crashing into the ground and kicking up dirt around them.

But just as the two began to rise to face each other, a bell rang signifying the end of round one.

"The winner of round one is...Jaune!" shouted Miltiades, revealing that Jaune's aura was in the green while Pyrrha's was in the red.

"That was a well fought match, Pyrrha." said Jaune, holding his hand out to her.

To which she gladly took it and shook it, the two of them smiling at one another.

"That's my boy!" exclaimed Orville, laughing a hearty smile as he pulled Miltiades into a side-hug, her cheeks reddening by the minute before pushing him away.

After regaining her composure, Miltiades gazed upon her daughter and her student.

"The two of you did splendidly for your first match. Jaune, remember to always gauge the amount of Aura you use and lose, it will help you in battle. And Pyrrha though you did win, you nearly lost due to carelessness and charging head first into battle. You must read your opponent and counter their attacks. You must create an opening. But besides that good job you two." said Miltiades, smiling at her daughter and student.

The two of them bowed before their teacher, smiling.

And for Jaune a part of him wanted to go all out, though it wouldn't help his cause. That being to get his body reaquainted with combat.

But Miltiades was right, back on his own world the only way to gauge how the fight was going was whether or not you were dead. But here, he could use Aura to better measure the fight.

And as Jaune and the others walked back into the temple, the caw of a bird drew his attention to a nearby cherry blossom tree.

There sitting atop a low hanging branch was a raven.

It's red eyes seemed to be staring at him.

But just as his eyes narrowed on the bird, it took off into the sky with another caw from it's beak.

And with a call from his father, Jaune walked back into the temple, putting an end to the first week of training.

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 **Greetings, once again, everyone!**

 **So, I bet you're all wondering what I've decided to announce?**

 **You aren't?**

 **Well fuck it.**

 **I've decided to put "Scattered Petals" on an indefinite hiatus for a period of time and replace it with a new story, "The Knight & The Wizard". **

**Check it out.**

 **And by the way, if anyone has any advice on how I should schedule these chapter updates so I don't end up frying my brain so much please let me know.**

 **Till next time!**


	9. Mistral Regional Tournament

**Greetings** **everyone, I'm back with the 9th chapter of Gun X RWBY and man did this chapter turn out WAAAY longer than I first thought it would but I had an especially awesome time writing it. I hope you enjoy reading it.**

 **Till next time!**

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Chapter Nine

Several weeks have passed since the Arcs came to Mistral and today was the last fight between Jaune and Pyrrha, both without armor or weaponry. On one said of the makeshift field stood Pyrrha, her redy hair tied back into a ponytail and dressed in a simple red and bronze colored gi. And on the other side stood Jaune, wearing a yellow headband and dressed in a white and yellow gi.

Off to the side stood Orville and Miltiades, both watching with intense eyes.

The two fighters have come quite a ways from where they originally stood.

Jaune, while not having full mastery of his semblance was able to willfully summon his scars and use them to his advantage.

While Pyrrha, was able to use her semblance in subtle movements and being able to fully manipulate her opponent's movements and attacks, provided they have metal on their person.

But neither fighters would be allowed to use their weapons or semblances in this final bout.

This match would have them rely on their techniques and reflexes to win.

Silence consumed the grounds around them.

Not a soul spoke out.

The elder amazon rose her right hand to the sky, causing both fighters to take their stances, watching each other with narrowed eyes.

Silence.

And much like the setting sun that cascaded the Mistralian Mountains, so too did the amazon's hand, fall to the earth.

And in an instance, the two fighters charged at one another, Pyrrha throwing a right jab, while simultaneously blocking a high kick from Jaune, before shoving him back a foot away.

The blonde boy smirked at Pyrrha before performing a leg sweep only for Pyrrha to jump over it and leaving her exposed a for a double palm push that sends her tumbling to the ground.

Luckily, she uses this momentum to roll back onto her feet and gets back into her stance.

The two fighters smiled at one another before charging towards each other, throwing jabs and blocking each other while sending out a small amounts of Aura to add extra force to their attacks.

Their struggle ends when they both jump back fair bit, each of them checking their Aura levels.

Pyrrha's was at 66%.

While Jaune's was at 45%.

This gave Jaune some knowledge on how his Aura was working. The more he used it, for attacks, blocking, and enhancing his body, the more rapidly his Aura level dropped.

It was a given that he must've been using his newfound ability subconsciously and that it take him a while to get it under control, while Pyrrha, who had been raised to use her Aura sparingly had a higher bar than him.

But he would have to worry about that later as Pyrrha had already begun charging at him, making sure to keep her arms raised to block any attacks Jaune might've had.

But just as Pyrrha, got close, Jaune, grabbed hold of her gi and used her charging momentum to send her flying back with Tomoe Nage, a Judo technique that relies on a charging opponent and falling back while grasping their body and sending them flying back.

Unfortunately, Pyrrha must've known that Jaune was going to use this move as she merely rolled forward back to her feet and made a sweeping leg kick at Jaune, who was still on the ground.

Only for Jaune to push off from the ground, dodging the sweep and after placing his palms to the ground, was able to twist his body around to deliver a tornado kick and sending Pyrrha further back, creating some distance between them.

Her breaths came out in huffs and her stance staggered a bit before straightening and shifted into a defensive stance.

A part of Jaune, smirked a bit as he decided to use another one of his old techniques. At first he was barely able to do so without causing stress on his muscles but after dealing with Miltiades and her continuous surprise attacks, Jaune could confidently say that he was a small step closer to getting his original strength.

And so, he shifted his stance into an open on, keeping his legs apart and his arms low, leaving him open for attacks.

Anyone with experience under their belt could tell that Jaune was setting up a trap. Unfortunately, Pyrrha was too engrossed in adrenaline to notice this, as she charged once again, hoping to end the match with a single hit.

But just as she reach her intended target, he disappeared, leaving her shocked and glancing around. But there was no sign of Jaune.

"Look up." said Jaune, his voice coming from above her and causing her to glance up directly into the sun's light, blinding her.

To which Jaune, who had been behind her in a crouch and threw his voice to confuse her, was able to trip her up and send her to the ground, where he held his fist directly over her neck.

"Yield." said Jaune, smirking down at Pyrrha, who stared up at Jaune, the sun's ray encircling him a bright glow while his face had a look of confidence, causing Pyrrha to blush before subconsciously using her semblance to wrap a lone metal pole around him and sending him flying into a nearby wall, creating a crack.

"I'm sorry!" she shouted, her face now red from embarrassment.

Miltiades smiled at the interaction while Orville let out a bellowing laugh at his son's misery, who was now a decoration on the wall.

And after safely getting Jaune free from his life as a decoration, Miltiades smiled and kneeled down to their level and placing a hand on both of their shoulder.

"You both have done well. Pyrrha terrific use of those techniques I taught you and Jaune, I see that you've put in our surprise training sessions to work." said Miltiades.

"It always amazes me when you call "child abuse" "surprise training sessions"." said Orville, laughing.

"Regardless, I think it's safe to assume that Jaune is, once again, the winner." said Miltiades.

"Wrong." said Jaune, crossing his arms. "Though my Aura level was higher than her's that last move, though unintentional, would've left me defenseless to another attack. Clearly, Pyrrha is the winner of our final match." said Jaune, surprising both Pyrrha and Miltiades but leaving his father smiling.

His son was always one to use dirty tricks when trying to win but when it really mattered his son had more honor in his bones then anyone Orville had ever met.

"You did a good job, Pyrrha. I'll make sure to get you back next time we meet." said Jaune, holding his hand out, an action that Pyrrha was all too happy to return.

The two of them shook hands, a friendly rivalry building between them.

Their interactions reminding Miltiades and Orville of how they met on their first mission together.

The blonde mountain man smiled at his own rival, who turned to smile back at him.

But just as Miltiades opened her mouth to speak to Orville, the man's stomach rumbled like an earthquake catching everyone's attention.

"Sheesh, dad were you trying to speak Ursa?" asked Jaune, jokingly.

"Well, considering this was your last match, I say we head into the city and have a relaxing day." suggested Miltiades, surprising Orville.

"What's this? Lil' Miss Miltiades "No Time For Fun" Nikos is suggesting a relaxing day in Haven? Did I get hit by a Goliath in the last five seconds?" joked Orville, laughing even after getting hit in the gut by Miltiades.

"I've changed since our last meeting Orville, you, of all people, should know that better than anyone." said Miltiades, smirking as Orville's eyes widened before walking back into the temple, her womanly hips swaying from side-to-side.

Of course, Jaune took notice of this, a stern frown settling upon his lips as he watched Orville stare after Miltiades before grabbing his father's shirt and tugging on it, making Orville kneel down to meet him only for Jaune to grab his ear lobe and tug on it.

"Dad, here's some friendly advice...Keep your sword in it's sheath." Jaune demanded, making sure his father knew he meant business before walking off with Pyrrha in tow and leaving Orville to contemplate.

After that ordeal, the Nikos women and the Arc men were now making their way through the city of Haven when they came upon a poster.

"Come on down to the Colosseum for Mistral's Regional Tournament. Admission is 45 Lien per adult and 10 Lien per child." read Jaune.

"Oh yeah, I forgot the tournament was today." said Orville.

"The tournament is today?! Mother, may we please go? I swear I will gladly run the mountain range if that's what it takes." asked Pyrrha, getting more and more excited.

"It would provide some entertainment as well as a learning experience." suggested Jaune.

Orville chuckled, looking at Miltiades. "Well, Miltia? Don't want to make two innocent kids sad, now do we?" joked Orville, causing Miltiades to sigh in defeat.

"Very well." said Miltiades.

With that Pyrrha's excitement grew ten times before grabbing Jaune's hand and dragging him towards the Colosseum, followed closely by Orville and Miltiades.

After getting past admissions, picking up some food and drinks, and taking their seats in a private viewer's box, the group sat in wait for the announcer to speak.

"Gooooood afternoon, ladies and gentlemen! And welcome to the annual Mistral Regional Tournament! Are you all excited?" asked the announcer and earning a shout of excitement in return. "Fantastic! Then let's get this tournament underway with our first match! On the red side, he's the massive mountain with a habit of sucking his thumb. Give it up for Fynn McCool!"

As if on call, a muscular man with flowing blonde hair and wielding a massive great Dane battle ax was Fynn McCool.

"And on the blue side, she's the slithering seductress with an eye for statues. Let's hear it for Viper Gorgoneia!" shouted the announcer.

Then a woman with dark green dreadlocks, black fishnet stockings and a set of whip swords sashaying onto the field.

"Now, Ah'll be honest, Ah feel a wee bad 'bout fightin' a lassie, such as yerself." said Fynn, grasping his battle ax with both hands.

Viper, smirking at Fynn, released her twin whip swords, their full length spilling onto the floor. "Oh, darling, that's so sweet of you but I'm afraid this damsel isn't in distress." said Viper, seductively.

"Fighters, take your stances!" shouted the announcer.

Both fighters immediately got to their fighting stances.

"Ready!" shouted the announcer.

Both of them hefted their weapons, their eyes narrowing at one another.

"Fight!" shouted the announcer.

And in an instant the two fighters clashed with each other and with them the roars of the crowd grew louder.

"Ah, it's been a while since Ah last went all out." said Fynn.

"Oh, what's the matter darling? Having trouble measuring up? Well then let me help you with that!" shouted Viper, lashing out with her whip swords in a barrage of strikes.

But the muscular giant held strong, using his aura to block most of the damage before charging headfirst into the barrage.

Jaune took this opportunity to tap Pyrrha's shoulder.

The little amazon turned to look at her friend.

"Alright Pyrrha, pay attention. You see how Fynn is charging into battle and letting Viper's swords attack him?" asked Jaune. To which Pyrrha nodded. "You have that same problem. Always charging headfirst into something without checking. And much in the way of combat, you can't charge into battle without knowing what might happen. As you can see, as soon as Fynn gets in close, he'll swing his ax in a horizontal fashion but Viper will slide underneath and wrap her swords around his legs." said Jaune.

And as soon as Jaune mentioned those words, Fynn came charging at Viper, enduring the onslaught of sword cuts but continuing his charge, raising his battle ax and swinging it from his right side but Viper, knowing this would happen, ran towards him and slid in between his legs, wrapping her swords around his ankles and pulling on them, tripping him up and sending him sprawling to the floor.

"Wow. How did you know that would happen, Jaune?" asked Pyrrha, amazed by her friend's skill.

"Anyone can do it, Pyrrha. All it takes is a little careful watching and reading your opponents. It's how I'm able to beat you half the time because you always charge into battle, especially if you don't have a weapon. But remember you're better suited to a sword and shield style of fighting and that requires waiting for your opponent to strike then capitalizing on their openings." said Jaune, his old "master" persona coming out as Pyrrha watched him with wide eyes.

Back to the fight, Viper was throwing the massive man around via her whip swords like a ragdoll, slamming him into the ground, pillars, and walls before launching him into the air and bringing him down into the ground, his head buried beneath the rocky sand while the rest of his body stood straight, looking like a humanoid ostrich. The crowd screaming and cheering her name but as Viper is about to leave the ground around her breaks apart before slowly sinking into the ground as a massive golden giant forms above her and in the center of it was Fynn McCool.

"You should count yerself lucky, wee lass. Ah haven't used ole Big Boy in a long time." said Fynn, cracking his knuckles, the giant golem doing the same via copying his motions.

But Viper, the ever so cool-headed seductress, merely took off her designer sunglasses, smiling as her green snake-like eyes shows her Faunus nature. Before combining her two whip swords into a bladed staff. "Hmpf, "Big Boy"? Are you sure you aren't compensating for something, darling?" asked Viper, in a seductively joking manner.

The giant then raised it's fist, bringing it down to smash the tiny huntress but Viper, using her bladed staff is able to vault over the fist and latches onto a nearby pillar, bringing her to safety. But the giant is quick to deliver more punishment as it breaks off a nearby pillar and uses it to smash the pillar Viper is standing on.

The fight continues on with Viper vaulting over the giant's attacks and using her staff to latch onto various pillars to which the giant then brought down.

It wasn't until Viper landed on the ground that Fynn spoke again.

"All this jumpin' and leapin' won't do any good, lassie!" shouted Fynn.

Viper simply giggles at him, her snake eyes shining through her half-lidded eyes. "You men are all the same, always running dick first and never looking at the full figure."

This confused Fynn for a moment, before finally noticing all the pillars were poking through the giant's legs, keeping it trapped in place.

A soft laugh brought his attention back to Viper, her green snake eyes shining as she sashayed her way towards the giant, still trapped before launching her whip blade at the center, latching onto Fynn before pulling him out of the giant, it's form fading away as a result.

Her smooth palms caressing his muscular jawline but when Fynn attempted to move he found that he couldn't.

He was frozen in place.

The seductress giggled once more before breaking her staff back into their sword forms and performed a barrage of swipes at Fynn before wrapping her whips around his waist and sending him into the sky.

her long, slender, fishnet stocking covered, legs carrying her away from her spot as Fynn came falling back down to the earth, his Aura levels plummeting into nothingness.

The Colosseum's bell rings sending the crowd screaming in excitement as Viper blows kisses to the crowd.

"And the winner of our first match is...VIPER!" shouted the announcer. "And I hope you're all ready because we're just getting started!" shouted the announcer.

And what a tournament it was. Throughout the tournament Jaune had seen warriors of all shapes and sizes and races. Many of them providing valuable information for Jaune about Faunus traits, Semblances, and use of Aura. But the one who was enjoying the most out of the tournament was little Pyrrha, who's face was pressed against the glass with her little rump shaking in delight. And for Jaune, who had a daughter in his past life, it was almost too much for his old man heart to handle. Miltiades, who had been watching the tournament with an analyzing eye was pointing out the openings many of the fighters had while Orville was telling her to lighten up.

"And now before we end this year's tournament, this year's regional tournament has a very special contest. One random audience member will get to test their mettle against our 5 time champion! Give a shout for...MISTER SATIN!" shouted the announcer, the roars of the crowd growing louder when suddenly the massive double doors of the area were burst open and standing in the dust cloud of smoke was a man with a black curly afro, thick mustache, and wearing a red satin martial artist uniform and in his palm was a microphone.

"Hello Mistral! Did. You. Miss. ME?!" shouted Mr. Satin and getting another roar of cheers in return. "Good! Now, the wonderful executives of this tournament came to me with this idea of fighting one random audience member and I have this to say...MISTER SATIN WILL TAKE ON ANYONE!" shouted Mr. Satin, the crowd going wild with excitement.

"And with that underway, let's find our lucky winner!" shouted the announcer the sound of a lottery machine going off before the jumbo-tron-style video screen came to life showing a series of random ticket numbers before landing on A432.

"And we have our challenger! The winner is ticket holder A432!" shouted the announcer.

Almost instantly everyone began checking their tickets but it wasn't until Jaune looked down at his own ticket that he realized that he was the winner.

The looks given to him were mixed to say the least; Orville's was a look of worry, Miltiades's was one of reassurance, and Pyrrha's were that of a starstruck fan.

"Why does the universe hate me?" Jaune asked no one.

And once again, Jaune was pulled into doing some stupid shit as he soon found himself, a grown man in a child's body facing off against a child in a grown man's body...Oh the irony.

"Well when I said I'd faced anyone I never thought I'd be fighting a little boy." said Mr. Satin.

"Oh, Mr. Satin, I've always wanted to test myself against a real fighter. I'm so glad I get to fight someone as strong as you." said Jaune, using his "child" persona to trick Mr. Satin.

The grown man's cheeks began to redden as he scratched the back of his head.

"Well then I'm happy to oblige Johan." said Mr. Satin, unaware of the amount of ire he was drawing from Jaune.

"Mr. Satin, my name is Jaune." said Jaune.

"Oh, my apologies John. Ref, start the match!" said Mr. Satin.

"You heard the man! Let's! Get! Started!" shouted the announcer, the starting bell sounding out.

Then Mr. Satin rose his hands to the sky, shouting a kool-aid man-style "Oh, yeah!" with the crowd following along.

But Jaune held firm, readying himself for any surprise attack before Mr. Satin decided to kneel down to his level, presenting his cheek to Jaune.

"Oh, Mr. Satin, the ever so kind champion that he is, is giving our contestant a free shot!" shouted the announcer.

"Go ahead kid, show me what you got." said a smugly Mr. Satin before receiving a punch to the jawline, the force sending him flying out of the ring and crashing into a nearby wall.

The crowd was stunned beyond belief.

Meanwhile Orville was busy trying not wet himself from laughter, Miltiades was looking ever so proud of her student and Pyrrha was cheering his name. While Jaune was busy loosening up his shoulder muscles.

"Compared to facing Grimm, deadly huntsmen, and a psychopathic teacher, this is little more than swatting a gnat." said Jaune.

"I-It looks like Mr. Satin is...out cold." said the announcer, feeling just as shock as the audience.

Silence filled the Colosseum as the audience watched Mr. Satin's body.

But soon enough Mr. Satin's body began to shift until the martial artist stood on shaking knees with a proud look on his face before bursting out into laughter.

"That was some punch, Joan! You're really something aren't you! Let's hear it for Juan, everybody!" shouted Mr. Satin.

The crowd's cheers switching out Mr. Satin's name with Jaune, though with varying degree of success due to name changes.

Jaune was simply content with watching Mr. Satin struggle to stand on weakened legs.

 _"The hell is wrong with this moron? Did he let me win because I'm a kid? If so then I am one part-pissed and one part-impressed. Or is he just insanely weak but lucky? He'd have to be to become a champion 5 times in a row."_ thought Jaune.

And before Jaune knew it, the announcer took his arm and raised it.

"And there you have it folks! A wonderful end to another wonderful tournament!" shouted the announcer before stopping as Mr. Satin took the microphone away from him.

"But before we end this little shindig, I, MISTER SATIN, have a very special announcement to make! I have decided to step down as your champion." said Mr. Satin, the crowd screaming their displeasure with this decision but a hand raised from the man silenced their talks. "Now, I know these have been some of the greatest moments of my life but it's time I leave the world of tournaments and give my time to a valuable cause...because I will be opening my very own huntsman academy, SATIN ACADEMY! Where I and many others will be training the world's next generation of fighters!" shouted Mr. Satin, the crowd's roars thundering into the sky while Jaune was busy thinking to himself, _"What the fuck is wrong with these people?"_

After that whole ordeal was taken care of both the Arcs and the Nikos were on their way back to the temple, the group congratulating Jaune on his first ever win and asking how it felt being a champion. Of course Jaune took it in stride before Orville decided to lift him onto his shoulders, lifting the trophy he got signed by Mr. Satin, it's signature reading out, "To Jean; Can't wait to see Satin Academy's first applicant. Signed Mr. Satin."

But before the group could walk further onto the temple grounds, a mysterious portal opened up behind them. The two adults reacting quickly as they both unsheathed their weapons and took their stances.

The portal began to shift when a grown woman wear red samurai-style body armor and white nevermore-style mask walk out.

Orville's eyes narrowed at the sight of the woman, his sword already ready to slice at her.

"Raven." said Orville.

"Orville." said Raven.

The mountain man glaring at the mysterious woman.

"What are you doing here?" he demanded, raising his sword to her eyes.

But Raven stay firm, looking past the deadly blade into Orville's eyes.

"Summer is dead." said Raven.

And with those words, all bravado left the Arc men's bodies.

Summer...was...dead?

"That's impossible, Summer couldn't be killed...she was a-" started Orville.

"I'm aware of what she was, Orville. But it doesn't change the fact." said Raven.

"Then why are you here?" Jaune asked, stepping up to Raven.

And for a moment it looked as if Raven was ready to cut him down just for speaking out of turn but instead chose to answer him.

"I thought it best that someone be there for them." said Raven, gesturing to the portal. "This will take you straight to Patch, more specifically, Qrow." said Raven, about to turn away before she felt an unknown hand on her person, her instinct running wild with fear before her eyes came upon Jaune.

And in Jaune's eyes burned with a monstrous fury.

"You were Summer's friend, she told me all about you. You deserve to be there as much as anyone. And I know of several people who would love nothing more than to see you there." said Jaune, his actions surprising Raven.

But alas his plea went unheard as she shook off his hold and took a few steps forward.

"It would be better if I didn't...for everyone." said Raven, a look of solemn on her face before her form shifted into that of the same Raven bird he saw many weeks ago.

And hand landed on Jaune's shoulder. It's palm connecting to the muscular arms of Orville.

And unspoken conversation went between them as they both faced the portal raven had come through.

Jaune took one last look at Pyrrha before handing her his trophy, a soft smile on his face as he walked through the portal back home, unaware of Pyrrha's cheeks being covered with tears.

And in an instance, the Arc men were back home, on the side of cliff. Standing nearby was Qrow, who looked decidingly sober and somber. The man looked at the two Arcs before looking at Jaune and gesturing towards Yang and Ruby, who stood by Summer's gravestone alongside Taiyang and the rest of the Arc family.

Slowly, Jaune took his steps towards the group, his feet crushing the wet grass under his feet. About halfway, Yang took notice of Jaune, her vibrant look was replaced by sadness, her lilac eyes were faded and her usual bouncy blonde hair was wet and straight from the rain. The same could be said of Ruby, who kept asking Taiyang when her mommy was going to wake up.

And in another instance both Yang and Ruby threw themselves into Jaune, grabbing his shirt and crying into his shoulders. Jaune simply wrapped his arms around the two girls, holding them close before sending off a silent promise to Summer. _"I swear, Summer, I will do everything to protect them."_

And so ended the tale of Summer Rose, a mother, a wife, a huntress, and a friend.

May the winds of time carry her petals to a better horizon.

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 **And so ends the tale of Summer Rose.**

 **To be honest I was really looking forward to writing her character in more chapters and truth be told I sort made the whole "travel to Mistral" arc as sort of a plan for Summer's death as I didn't know how to write her off traditionally so I sort of settled for an off screen death.**

 **But unfortunately this will be the final chapter of the "Childhood" Jaune arc, as I will be time skipping to the "Teenhood" Jaune arc, as he struggles with life in Beacon.**

 **But maybe I'll bring Summer back in some Chibi Omakes, let me know if that sounds alright with you guys.**

 **Oh, and to anyone who notes that Mr. Satin is clearly an allusion to Dragonball Z's own Mr. Satan then congrats, you get a cookie. I had actually been drawing inspiration from DBZ when I watched Trunks Vs Mr. Satan.**

 **And who knows, maybe one day I'll write a story about Mr. Satin and his own huntsman academy one day.**

 **But that'll have to be for later.**

 **Chapter Ten Due - March 11th**

 **Till next time!**


	10. A Beacon of Hope and Trolls

**Greetings everyone and here is the 10th chapter of Gun X RWBY and the start to the Beacon Arc (No pun intended). This is a little lackluster but it's mainly to get the new arc rolling so try to bare in mind. As for Jaune's power level...I guess it's around the range of a fourth year in Beacon. Strong but not at his full strength, yet.**

 **Till next time!**

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Chapter 10

After taking care of both Yang and Ruby after their mother had passed and both Taiyang and Qrow were off bringing in money, Jaune decided to travel the world of Remnant, in search of Sayuri, though he phrased this to his family as a "soul-searching journey", a fact that had many of the Arcs up in arms, mainly his sisters and mother.

But after some explanation they reluctantly let him go. Of course neither Yang nor Ruby were happy with Jaune leaving them again, especially after he had promised to stay by their side and protect them. And so on the day Jaune was supposed to leave, he gave the both of them a single task...If either one of them were to beat him in a match, then he would stay.

But, sadly, this wasn't the case. Neither could beat him or find a way to stop him and were left crying as Jaune boarded a transport ship to begin his journey.

That was 3 years ago and now our resident little mercenary was 17 years of age and back in Vale. Unlike most teenagers, Jaune's choice of clothing was more simplified with a hint of style, which consisted of a black twin-tailed longcoat, because longcoats are badass, two white armor-plated pauldrons on his shoulders, a white plackart chest plate on his upper torso, two white vambraces and gauntlets on his forearms and hands, two white greaves for his shins. Beneath these was a simple pair of dark faded blue jeans and a dark gray t-shirt. Littered across his person were an assortment of dust grenades, a combat knife, ammo pouches, and a set of glasses created by his sister, Verde, that used projection and wireless interfacing to connect with his scroll, granting him a sort of Heads-Up Display called "Project All-Seeing", and with his own knowledge of high technology, Jaune was able to turn his HUD Glasses into a real boss-type apparel.

But truthfully, it was his choice in weaponry that Jaune found himself proud of. After traversing the western side of Mistral, Jaune had the pleasure of meeting an elderly weaponsmith, named Vulcan Smith, who, after saving him from a pack of Beowolves, insisted on forging him a weapon befitting a hero. This weapon came in the form of an armored briefcase that could then shift into a rifle with two settings; live rounds and Dust rounds, with an attachable bayonet.

He decided to call this weapon...Black Clover. As a way of remembering his previous life.

But alas, his journey had come to an end even after searching the entirety of Atlas, Vacuo, and Mistral, the only place left for Sayuri to be...was Vale.

Which brought him to right now, wandering the streets of Vale and using his HUD to talk with his family, more specifically his mother.

"I'm sorry you didn't find what you were looking for sweetie." said Iris, her voice coming through the glasses's earphones.

"It's alright, mom. Just glad that I'm finally back home." he said, smiling at her projected picture.

Jaune always counted himself lucky that he was reborn into a loving family.

"How are the girls?" he asked, genuinely curious about his older sisters.

"I wouldn't know, dearie. After you went on your little journey the girls decided that it was high time they followed their dreams as well and left the nest, sort of speak. And with your father's job taking up most of his time away from home, it's been dreadfully dull around here." said Iris, taking a moment to sip her tea.

"I'm sorry to hear that, mom. Is there anything I can do to help?" he asked.

"Yes, you can give me some grandbabies." she said in a very serious tone.

Not this shit again.

"Mom, I'm 17...I'm too young to have kids." he said, sighing.

This was the sixth time his mother had mentioned wanting grandchildren and even if Jaune's new life was that of a 17 year old boy, his mind and soul was still that of a grown man.

"And I'm not getting any younger and I need some grandkids to spoil." she said.

Jauen felt a heavy sigh escape his lips but just as he was about to argue back, the sound of shattering glass caught his attention. And there a few blocks up was a little girl with a red hood wielding a massive scythe and standing in front of her was Roman Torchwick, a thief and conman that had escape custody multiple times.

"Mom, I've got to go. I'll call you back later." said Jaune, abruptly ending his call and racing towards the ensuing fight.

"Okayyy...Get her!" Roman commanded the other men.

The henchmen all began to rush out of the shop and charge at the little girl, who used her muscles and spun on the bar of her scythe, kicking one of the henchmen in the process before pulling the scythe from the ground and pulls the trigger, firing the weapon and using it's momentum to hit another henchmen with the butt of her weapon and sending him flying off to the side. Before firing again and bringing the weapon's head down on one henchmen and dodging the other's gunfire with her rifle's recoil, getting just close enough to knock the final henchmen into the air and landing at Roman's feet.

The orange-haired thief looked at the downed henchmen, sighing.

"You were worth every scent. Truly, you were." said Roman, dropping his cigar and crushing it with his cane, the sound of police sirens ringing in the distance. "Well, Red, I think we can all say it's been an eventful evening, and as much as I'd love to stick around...I'm afraid this is where we part ways." said Roman, firing his cane at the little girl.

But unfortunately for Vale's conman, the result he got was not the result he wanted.

Because standing in front of little Red holding his arms in an X-crossed pattern was Jaune.

And he looked pissed.

"Are you alright?" Jaune asked, listening to Ruby cough up a storm. "Alright, you stay here and watch the old man. I'll take care of Roman." said Jaune, rushing off to catch Torchwick while Ruby rubbed the dirt from her eyes.

Ruby then watched the mysterious boy rush after Torchwick before turning to look at the elderly shopkeeper.

"You okay if I go after him?" she asked, getting a nod back and setting off to join the fight on top of the roof.

After making up onto the roof, Ruby watched in amazement as both the boy and Roman were engaged in a full-on brawl. The boy was blocking Roman's attempts to hit him with his cane by using his armored vambraces while also lashing out with various kicks and punches, not aiming to do harm but more to catch him off guard. Finally, the battle ceased when a bullhead suddenly appeared, catching the boy's attention just enough for Roman to smack him away with his cane.

But before Roman could move any further, the boy then opened his rifle, switching out his live ammo for some Ice-Dust and firing at Roman's leg, freezing it in place.

"Fire at the bullhead, aim for their thrusters!" Jaune shouted at Ruby after noticing that she had decided to join him.

And Ruby, never one to turn down the opportunity to blow something up, shifting her scythe into it's rifle mode and began firing at the Bullhead's thrusters.

Jaune, meanwhile was busy dodging Roman's attacks while making sure to freeze his leg further only for a random fireball to hit Roman, freeing him.

The thief glared up at the Bullhead.

"Fucking bitch..." he mumbled, using the opportunity to shoot at Ruby, who was unable to notice the oncoming attack due to her focus on the Bullhead.

Jaune could only watch as Roman's flare flew towards Ruby. His focus left divided between saving Ruby and stopping Roman.

Luckily, help came in the form of a mature blonde woman with vivid green eyes and wearing a formal dress shirt, black skin-tight pants, heels, and purple cape, casting a circle of protection using Dust and her weapon. Ruby's eyes widened as she watched the mysterious woman then wave her weapon, summoning several streaks of purple and hurling them at the Bullhead.

While Jaune turned his attention back to Roman, switching his clip for some Gravity-Dust and using the recoil to launch himself at Roman, swinging his legs and catching him in the side, launching him off to the side.

Soon enough the Bullhead was placed into hover mode as another mysterious woman, the darkness keeping her face hidden, began launching fireballs at the others, keeping them away as Roman somehow managed to climb onto the Bullhead and into the cockpit.

"We've got to get the hell out of here, now!" shouted Roman.

The woman then began to raise her arms as her dress started glowing before launching a burst of fiery energy at the huntress.

Only for Jaune to suddenly appear, blocking the damage, his appearance was now altered as his blonde hair was now white and his blue eyes turned red, though his skin tone was left unchanged.

Unfortunately, that was all the criminals needed to make their getaway as the Bullhead took off into the night sky.

Now with no one left to fight, Jaune's form reverted back to normal and shifted his rifle back into it's briefcase mode and placing it on his back, locking it in place. But it wasn't until he felt something run into him that his attention was brought down to the girl. Her black and red hair was left disheveled and wild and her cheeks were stained with tears.

Soon enough, her eyes opened to reveal a beautiful set of silver eyes.

"Is it really you?" she asked, hope filling her heart as he smiled down at her, wrapping his arms around her lithe body.

"Yeah, it's me. I'm home, Ruby." said Jaune, smiling.

After that ordeal had been taken care of their rescuer had introduced herself as Glynda Goodwitch and had demanded that she took the two of them to the Police Department for questioning.

Jaune could tell that Glynda was having a rough night long before she ended up saving Ruby.

He could only assume that reasoning behind her exhaustion was overworking herself. And now, said woman, was pacing back and forth, holding a tablet in her arms.

"I hope you realize that your actions tonight will not be taken lightly, you two. You not only put yourselves in danger, but others as well." said Glynda.

"But they started it!" Ruby argued back.

While Jaune knew better to stay quiet and let the woman rant.

"If it were up to me, you'd both be sent home...With a pat on the back...And a slap on the wrist." said Glynda, slamming her weapon down on the table, causing Ruby to wrap her arms around Jaune's left arm. "But...there is someone who would like to meet you both." she said, moving to the side as the door to the interrogation room opened up to reveal a silver-haired man with round glasses, dressed in a green suit and holding a mug and a plate of cookies.

"Ruby Rose...You...have silver eyes." said the man, leaning forward and staring into her eyes.

"Uh, um..." she stuttered, not knowing what to do before the man changed his attention over to Jaune.

"And, Jaune Arc. I have heard many things about you, all good things...I assure you." said the man, again changing his attention back to Ruby and gesturing over to a video of both Jaune and Ruby fighting. "So! Where did you, both, learn to do this?" asked the man.

"S-Signal Academy." stuttered Ruby.

"I'm mainly self-taught but I did get some training from my father and Miltiades Nikos." said Jaune.

"Yes, I'm familiar with Mrs. Nikos. Though I was surprised when I heard she had taken on a student. And even more surprised when I heard of said student defeating the Mistral Regional Tournament in one punch." said the man, smirking behind his mug as Ruby looked at Jaune with starstruck eyes. "And you, Miss Rose. I find it hard to believe that the faculty of Signal Academy taught you to use one of the most dangerous weapons ever designed."

"Well, it was mainly one teacher in particular." said Ruby.

"I see..." said the man, placing the plate of cookies in front of the two and watching as Ruby began to inhale cookie after cookie. "It's just that I've only seen one other scythe-wielder of that skill before. A dusty, old crow..."

"Oh! That's my uncle!" mumbled Ruby, her mouth full of chewed up cookies.

"Ruby, don't talk with your mouth full." said Jaune, causing Ruby's cheeks to redden before swallowing her food.

"Sorry. That's my Uncle Qrow! He's a teacher at Signal. I was complete garbage before he took me under his wing. And now, I'm all like - Hooowaaah! Witchaaa!" said Ruby, waving her arms around in a pseudo-karate style.

"So I've noticed. And what is an adorable girl such as yourself doing at a school designed to train warriors?" asked the man.

"Well...there's two reasons, sir. But, the main thing is...I want to be a Huntress." said Ruby, her eyes shining with determination.

"You want to slay monsters?" he asked.

"Yeah! I only have two more years of training left at Signal! And then I'm going to apply to Beacon! You see, my sister's starting this year, and she's trying to become a Huntress, and I;m trying to become a Huntress 'cause I wanna help people. My parents always taught us to help others, so I thought, Hey, I might as well make a career out of it! I mean the police are alright, but Huntsman and Huntresses are just so much more romantic and exciting and cool and really, GOSH, you know!" said Ruby staring at the man with a wild, crazy smile. Only calming down when Jaune placed a hand on her head.

"Breathe, Ruby." said Jaune. His words having an immediate effect on her.

"And what of the second reason, Miss Rose?" the man asked.

It was then that Ruby's cheeks turned bright red from embarrassment as she stole glances at Jaune.

"I...um...I want to be strong enough to beat Jaune in a match so that he'll never leave me, ever again!" she exclaimed, covering her mouth.

But to Jaune it only the wishes a girl not wanting to lose her first childhood friend and surrogate older brother.

There was no possible way Ruby had a crush on him.

The man, once again, hid his growing smile behind his mug before setting it back down on the table.

"Do you know who I am?" he asked, saving the girl from any further embarrassment.

"You're Professor Ozipn. You're the headmaster at Beacon." said Ruby.

"Hello." said Ozpin, smiling.

"Nice to meet you." said Ruby, smiling back.

"You want to come to my school." he asked, noticing Jaune's look of ire out of the corner of his eye.

"More than anything." said Ruby.

The headmaster felt a smile on his lips as he turned to look at Glynda.

"Miss Goodwitch, would you mind taking Miss Rose out into the hallway so that she may contact her family?" he asked. The woman nodded and held open the door as Ruby walked through, only looking back to look at Jaune, who smiled and waved her off.

"And what of you, Mr. Arc? Do you want to come to my school, as well?" asked Ozpin.

"In all fairness, Professor Ozpin. I don't think the life of a Huntsman suits me." said Jaune.

"Is that so? Then perhaps you'd like to answer why it is a reincarnated mercenary is traveling all over Remnant in searching of a woman called, Sayuri Hibachi?" asked Ozpin, his words shocking Jaune to the point of activating his semblance, summoning several tendrils and pointing them at his exposed neck.

"Who are you and how in the hell do you know about me?" Jaune demanded.

"You could say that I'm a lot like you, Mr. Arc. As for how it is I know about you there is an old saying...The eyes are the windows to the soul." said Ozpin, though his words had little meaning to Jaune.

"Don't give me that cryptic bullshit. I want answers now." he demanded once again.

"It is a skill not many possess but those with heightened mastery over their Aura are able to read the Aura of others, thus granting them innate knowledge over their target. This can range from their fighting style to their emotions and on very rare occasions...their memories." said Ozpin, watching as Jaune's eyes widened.

"The day I was reborn...you read my Aura...You saw my memories." said Jaune, willing his form to revert back to normal but keeping his guard up.

"Yes, and I must say Mr. Hayama, your past is one that rivals my own. Two men, both reborn into bodies not their own, and granted powers with the capabilities of destroying entire kingdoms but choose to wield them for the benefit of all mankind." said Ozpin. "I've done my fair share of research on your activities, Mr. Hayama. In the span of three years, you've brought an end to the atrocities committed by Jacque Schnee, thereby placing the SDC back into the hands of Willow Schnee, have completely disabled numerous drug cartels and sex trafficking in Vacuo, and of course the rescuing of various villages from both the Grimm and Bandits. In fact, you've built-up quite the reputation though throughout it all, no one has been able to identify you." said Ozpin, slightly smirking.

"Then how were you able to do what many others couldn't?" Jaune asked.

"You could say, a little birdy told me." said Ozpin.

"If you know who I am and of my past then you know that I'm not the kind of person you want to piss off." said Jaune, not bothering to hide his threat.

"Rest assured, Mr. Hayama, I have no ill intent towards you. In fact, I have something...of a job that requires your assistance." said Ozpin, folding his arms over his chest.

"I'm listening." he replied, curious over what the job was.

"I have no doubt that you are already aware of the four maidens, correct?" asked Ozpin.

"I've heard the rumors. And one thing I know is that every rumor began with a truth." said Jaune.

"The maidens are ancient power that is passed from female to female, each of them representing one of the seasons; Fall, Winter, Spring, & Summer. These women are then granted with extraordinary abilities...simply put, magic. But given your history, I'm sure that these pale in comparison to what you've faced." said Ozpin.

"Yeah; Numerology, golem creation, language grave, shape-shifting...The shit I had to deal with was enough to make want to nuke the fuck out of everything." said Jaune, holding his head. "But that doesn't explain why you need me."

"Simply put...The latest Fall Maiden was attacked on her way to Haven Academy and she is now currently in a...coma. We're unsure of when or if she 'll ever wake up, there is a tear in her Aura, almost as if it was ripped in half. We've managed to stabilize her in a state of the art stasis field in hopes of finding a cure...or, if it's gets drastic, a new guardian, though I can only hope it doesn't come to that. Therefore, I require your services in protecting the Fall Maiden. And in return, I and my associates with help you in locating Miss Hibachi." said Ozpin.

And Jaune thought about this for the longest time.

True he could always leave and continue traveling across Remnant until he found a clue but this world was still a mystery to him and as such wouldn't have the necessary means of locating her.

On top of the fact that, his master was already well acquainted with this world.

And it was clear to Jaune that if he was to ever have any luck in locating his master and putting an end to her misdeeds then he'd need all the help he could get.

"Alright, I'll help protect the Fall Maiden. What do I need to do?" asked Jaune.

And it here that the headmaster of Beacon Academy began to smirk.

And not just any kind of smirk.

No.

This.

Was.

A.

Troll.

Smirk.

...Three Days Later...

"GET THE FUCK BACK HERE, JAUNE!" shouted a fiery, raging, red-eyed, Yang Xiao Long as she attempted to beat her childhood friend into the ground.


	11. Welcome To Beacon, Part One

**Greetings everyone, I hope you're all excited for this new chapter, again it's more of a setting the tone sort of chapter but don't worry I plan on doing more for the next chapter so just wait out till then.**

 **Other than that nothing new to add but this will be the last of the "Rapid-Fire Chapters" as I will be moving the updates to every other Sunday in order to make room for "The Knight & The Wizard"**

 **Till next time!**

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Chapter 11

Let it be known that Professor Ozpin, the headmaster of Beacon Academy was a dead man when Jaune got a hold of him.

Here he was dodging a barrage of rage-induced punches from a fiery-blonde bombshell while Ruby was busy trying to stop her.

A new life but still the same old shit.

Finally, the man had had enough and using Yang's momentum was able to grasp her wrist and the collar of her jacket, making sure to sweep her leg as he threw her onto the ground before getting on top of her, keeping her arms on the ground as she continued to rage.

"I'M GONNA FUCKING KILL YOU, YOU BASTARD!" she screamed, struggling to get free of his hold.

"Yang, I need you to calm down." said Jaune, glaring into her eyes.

"YOU LEFT US! YOU ABANDONED US!" she continued to scream, small tears escaping out of the corner of her eyes. "How could you leave me? First, my mom, then Summer, and now, you? What did I do wrong?" she asked, her red eyes going back to their normal lilac.

But she was right, he had abandoned them.

He left when they needed him.

"You did nothing wrong, Yang." Jaune said just as he pulled her into his arms. And slowly her own wrapped themselves around his neck, holding him tightly. "I'm sorry for what I did, Yang. Not a day goes by where I don't hate myself for doing what I did. But I had to do it...I needed to get stronger...For you and for Ruby."

And for some strange reason, Jaune could feel Yang's arms tighten even more so, her face heating up while her heart started pumping faster.

"You're still an asshole." said Yang, managing to calm down.

"It's one of my best qualities." said Jaune, smirking before asking "You better now?"

"Yeah, yeah...I'm okay. But first." said Yang, just before tapping Jaune's jawline with her knuckles. "Now then, lady killer, why don't tell me what you're doing here? Did old man Ozzy give you an invitation too?" asked Yang

"Something like that but I guess you could say I decided someone responsible was needed to make sure you didn't destroy the school while I was gone, again." said Jaune, smirking at Yang.

"That was only one time and I only destroyed one classroom, besides the loser touched my hair. I can't let that go without a proper punishment." said Yang, feeling quite proud of herself before grabbing Ruby and pulling her into a hug. "But seriously, I can't believe the both of you are coming to Beacon with me, this is the best day ever!"

"Please make her stop." pleaded Ruby, looking to Jaune for help.

"But I'm so proud of you!" Yang exclaimed while Jaune watched on.

"Really Sis, it was nothing. Besides it was Jaune, who did most the work." said Ruby, hoping steering the conversation away from herself.

"Don't count yourself short, Ruby. In combat it matters little about who did the most work, what matters is who is alive to tell the ending." said Jaune, remembering his various missions he was lucky to live through.

"Jaune's right, Ruby. What you did was incredible! I just know everyone will think you're the bee's knees." said Yang, feeling ever-so more teasing of her little sister.

"I don't want to be the "bee's knees", okay? I don't want to be any kind of knees! I just want to be a normal girl with normal knees." said Ruby, looking directly at her knees.

Seeing her little sister is strife was difficult for Yang. She only wanted her to feel proud of herself, even if it was short-lived.

"Ruby, listen to me." said Jaune, placing a hand on Ruby's little shoulder. The feeling of her soft clothing keeping their contact apart. "You have been given a tremendous opportunity to attend Beacon Academy. And while I'm sympathetic towards you, I'm afraid that anyone granted such a state is beyond a "bee's knees." Regardless, there is nothing wrong with feeling proud of yourself and I, for one, am proud of how far you've come and I'm sure you'll only continue to make me proud for years to come." said Jaune, smiling at his childhood friend.

Now for Jaune, these words were nothing but words of confidence he'd tell every cadet in training.

But for a girl like Ruby, who had grown to view him as a surrogate older brother and a crush, these words were enough for her face to redden into a ripe tomato.

It only got worse when he placed his forehead to her's to check her temperature.

"Are you alright, Ruby? You're not sick are you?" Jaune asked, pressing his forehead to her's.

And Yang, feeling that undeniable jealousy boiling inside her was quick to act as she pulled the two apart, making sure to step in front of Ruby to keep Jaune's focus on her.

"She's fine, she's just...lightheaded! You know how it is, high altitude and whatnot." said Yang.

But before anything could continue further the ship's television came to life showing the Vale News Network.

Jaune smiled at the broadcast, he always enjoyed watching the new, even in his previous life. It was always a nice way to relax before bed and he'd normally be watching with a nice cup of coffee.

And here was no different.

Now, it was a way to learn more and more about Remnant as a whole and unlike most new stations in his old life, these made sure to have both sides of a story before saying anything.

"The robbery was led by nefarious criminal, Roman Torchwick, who continues to evade authorities. If you have any information on his whereabouts, please contact the Vale Police Department. Back to you, Lisa." said the VNN's reporter, Cyril.

Jaune, seeing this, placed his HUD glasses back on, activating it as the holographic screen came to life. It's view on a police file of Roman Torchwick, courtesy of the Vale Police Department. The file reading as such:

Full Name: Roman Torchwick

Gender: Male

Age: 30

Date of Birth: January 9th

History: Unknown

Wanted for: Assault, Drug Possession, Larceny, Arson, Bribery, Disorderly Conduct, Disturbing the Peace, Fraud, and Identity Theft.

Last Known Location: Downtown Vale, Marble Rd., From Dust Till Dawn. 9: 34 PM.

'There has to be a reason Roman was robbing a common Dust shop. And according to the report made by the shopkeeper, no Lien was stolen and thanks to Ruby no Dust was stolen either. But that begs the question; why was Roman attempting to steal Dust? And just who the hell was that woman with him?' thought Jaune, cupping his chip in thought.

"Thank you Cyril. In other news, this Saturday's Faunus Civil Rights protest was met with happy smiles as Willow Schnee, the new CEO of the Schnee Dust Company, announces her plan to do away with the unfair working conditions placed on by her ex-husband. Meanwhile, the White Fang is continuing to make strides in their quest of equality thanks to the combined effort of Sienna Khan and Ghira Belladonna. I believe I speak for everyone when I say I'm proud to see the organization return to peaceful means..." said Lisa just before the feed was cut off, switching to a hologram of Glynda Goodwitch.

"Hello, and welcome to Beacon." said Hologram Glynda.

"Who's that?" asked Yang, having never seen the woman before.

"My name is Glynda Goodwitch." the hologram replied.

"Oh, nevermind." said Yang, feeling a little embarrassed but taking it in stride.

"You are among a privileged few who have received the honor of being selected to attend this prestigious academy. Our world is experiencing an incredible time of peace, and as future Huntsman and Huntresses, it is your duty to uphold it. You have demonstrated the courage needed for such a task, and now it is our turn to provide you with the knowledge and the training to protect our world." finished the hologram before disappearing and leaving the view of the outside in full view of the others.

And Ruby, excited to see the sights of Vale, quickly rush to the windows, placing her smooth palm on the pristine glass window.

"Oh, wow! Look, you can see Signal from up here! I guess home isn't too far after all!" said Ruby, smiling as both Yang and Jaune placed a hand on her shoulders.

"Beacon's our home now." said Yang, her blonde lock bouncing just slightly.

"Yang's right, Ruby. For the next four years Beacon will be our home away from home." Jaune said, smiling at her.

"And you're not gonna leave again?" Ruby asked, her eyes pleading for his answer to be no.

And luckily the smile on Jaune's face was all she needed as she wrapped her arms around his torso. Her hug soon being joined by Yang's own.

"Like lady killer could resist leaving this bombshell, right?" asked Yang, teasing her childhood crush.

"Sorry, Yang but I'm afraid you're a few years too early for me. I prefer women a bit more mature" said Jaune, remembering his number one rule.

NEVER BECOME A LOLICON.

Unfortunately, this was fuel for Yang's fire.

A fact that Jaune soon saw when the said "bombshell" placed her fist directly into his face and sending him flying out the transport ship and crashing into the school's courtyard, creating a crater.

Meanwhile, Ozpin, who was watching the interaction via cameras was smirking behind his cup of coffee, sighing in delight.

"I think this will be a very enjoyable year." said the trolling headmaster.


	12. Welcome To Beacon, Part Two

**Greetings everyone and here is the chapter I promised you guys, this one longer to make up for it. I'm glad you guys are enjoying this story just as much as I enjoy writing it but I am still learning to properly write so it may seem clunky and choppy at best so please bare with it for now. Make sure to check back next Sunday on the 11th for the 5th chapter of "The Knight & The Wizard". **

**Till next time!**

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Chapter 12

If there was a definite number for the amount of times Jaune had been punched into a literal crater, it'd have to be in the thousands. And only a small percentage would include; monsters, deities, superhumans, and robots. The rest would include women who got pissed at him and thanks to Yang that number was in the one hundred, thousands.

And above the smoldering crater created via Jaune was a crystal-clear blue sky and a crowd of students all around the edge of the crater, watching as a Jaune struggled to his feet and dusting the dirt off of his clothing, just in time for Ruby to appear with an embarrassed look.

"Are you okay, Jaune? You aren't hurt, are you?" asked Ruby as Jaune climbed out of the crater.

"Yeah, I'm alright. Not the first time Yang made a hole with my body and it won't be the last. Speaking of Yang, where is she?" Jaune asked the little red-hooded reaper.

"Hehe...Um, well~." she said, poking her two index fingers together as a still-fuming Yang stomped into the atrium.

"I don't know why she's pissed, is it wrong that I prefer mature girls?" asked Jaune was he started walking towards the atrium followed by Ruby mumbling something about milk.

The two childhood friends walked through the luscious courtyard of Beacon Academy, a school designed to house several superpowered, hormonal, teenagers armed with dangerous weaponry in an effort to become Huntsman and Huntress, who's job is to protect and serve Humanity against an infamous enemy.

Where had Jaune heard of that before?

Sarcasm is sarcasm.

Regardless, Jaune was somewhat relieved the school was similar to Mikado High and there was something about being a student again that made Jaune feel reminiscent.

It wasn't until he felt Ruby tugging on his coat sleeve that Jaune watched the little girl go into her standard "Weapon Otaku Mode".

"Ohmygosh, Jaune! That kid's got a collapsible staff! And she's got a fire sword!" exclaimed the weapon otaku.

"Ruby." said Jaune only for Ruby to continue on.

"And he's got a Dust shield."

"Ruby."

"Oh, oh, and look there's a rocket-powered hammer!"

"Ruby!" finally Jaune shouted, managing to catch Ruby's attention, her cheeks reddening from embarrassment.

"I did it again, didn't I?" asked Ruby though her embarrassment was soon null and void when Jaune placed his hand on her head, patting it with a loving smile.

"It's alright, Ruby. The fact that you have such a fascination with weaponry is one of your best qualities." said Jaune, smiling as Ruby's cheeks began to redden just before she hugged him.

"I'm glad you're back, Jaune."

"I'm happy to be back, Ruby. Now let's get going before we're late." said Jaune as he started to lead himself and Ruby towards the atrium. The two of them walking past another girl struggling with her luggage and Ruby, being the helpful little girl that she was, was quick the offer her assistance.

"Um, excuse me, do you need some help?" she asked the girl.

"I'm doing just fine, thank you very much." said the girl, frowning as she continued to struggle with her luggage.

"Are you sure about that?" Ruby asked again.

"Yes, I am sure, you dunce." the girl said again.

"Well excuse me, princess. I was just trying to help." argued Ruby, her irritation slowly rising.

"It's heiress, actually." spoke up a mysterious voice and grabbing the girls' attention. And there standing off to the side was a girl with flowing, starry-black hair, yellow irises, and sitting atop her head, twitching in the light breeze, were a set of feline ears. "It's been awhile Weiss. How have you've been?" asked the Faunus girl.

"Blake, finally someone familiar appears." said the heiress, a soft but firm smile on her face. "Please tell this dolt that I do not require her assistance and that I am quite capable of helping myself."

The aforementioned Blake softly smiled as she watch her friend interact with another person. "Weiss, remember what Willow said when you were stuck in the cherry blossom tree and you kept refusing our help?" asked Blake as an embarrassed blush formed on Weiss's cheeks.

Reluctantly, the heiress sat her luggage on the ground and held her hand out to Ruby.

"I apologize for my attitude, it is unbecoming of a Schnee and yes, I would a...appreciate your assistance." said Weiss, though only through clenched teeth.

And for Ruby, it was downright strange seeing someone like Weiss, who not five seconds ago was berating her for even offering her help, was now, not only apologizing for how she acted but was asking for help as well.

"Um...It's okay, I forgive you." said Ruby, taking Weiss's hand in her's, the two shaking in agreement when Jaune decided to speak up, drawing the girls' attention to him.

"See, now we're all friends here, right?" asked Jaune.

And in an instant the cool and collected Blake vanished in a puff, leaving behind a shadow of her former self, and racing off into the school's atrium.

The action genuinely taking the others by surprise.

"Was it something I said?" asked Jaune, turning his head to look at the others.

Elsewhere, Blake's heart was thumping a mile-a-minute.

It was him.

Even after all these years, she could still remember meeting him like it was yesterday.

The times he'd look at her were enough to make her blush up a storm. And when he'd pat her head just in the right spot between her ears was enough to make her swoon. Even if he didn't mean to, it was because of him that her dad continued on as high leader of the White Fang and showed her that not every human had ill if it wasn't for that, she'd never have met Weiss.

And then came the announcement of Mistral's Regional Tournament and with it the match between Mr. Satin and Jaune Arc. Blake could still remember dragging her mother and father to watch the match but by the time she brought them into the room the match was already over and Jaune had won. The boy she had been pinning for had revealed himself to be stronger than even the five-time champion. Soon, his name was known throughout Mistral and in honor of him the Mistralian Council announced that they would allow juniors to participate which soon paved the way for contestants such as Pyrrha Nikos.

But for Blake, all it did was show another side of her crush.

And then it all changed when she read...Ninjas of Love.

And her entire world changed from that point on.

In every dream she'd see herself and Jaune acting out a scene from the book.

Soon enough she became frustrated with this feelings of longing which soon turned to frustration and then anger. There would be times she'd walk around Menagerie and the whole village would run at the sight of her.

Luckily, her mother thought it best to help her...by training her to win her man.

Needless to say she quickly dashed those efforts away and instead chose to focus on helping her dad at rallies and peace conferences which soon led her to meeting Willow and Weiss. Of course Weiss was still feeling hostile towards the Faunus but after remembering her time with Jaune, Blake was soon able to break her friend's icy wall and the two of them became friends.

Then one day everything changed when her friend, Adam Taurus, ran away from home.

And Blake was never the same after that.

She began to shut herself off from everyone.

She even contemplated running after Adam to bring him back home but knew she'd never it far without help.

But then help came to visit her.

She still remembered the day when her doors were blown open by a very irritated Weiss.

"W-Weiss! What are you doing-"

"SILENCE!"

"Yes, ma'am."

"I sent you several messaged and none of them were answered. Do you realize what you put me through? I had to wake Klein in the middle of the night just to fly me here and we both know what Klein is like when he hasn't gotten a good night's rest.

"Weiss, you don't understand-"

"NO! You don't understand! Do you remember when I refused help even after getting stuck in the tree? Well now I'm telling you the same thing. If you need help then you have to let me know...Blake, you're my best friend and I hate it when I can't help you. So please, let me help."

The two of them had stayed up the entire night just talking and when morning came and Weiss was about to go home, Blake told her she was going to become a Huntress.

Only for said friend to tell her the same thing.

And thus sparked an intense rivalry between the two of them.

Which brought her to Beacon Academy, the same Huntsman academy that Weiss decided to transfer to. She was already prepared to walk headfirst into the school and make a name for herself.

But then she saw him and that brought her to right now, hiding in the crowd of students while mentally fighting herself.

"Stupid! Stupid! Why did I run? I finally see him after all these years and I run with my tail between my legs?!" she mentally screamed at herself when she felt a hand on her shoulder, spooking her only to see an irritated Weiss.

"H-Hello, Weiss-" she started before being silenced.

"Don't say it." the heiress replied.

"Okay." she answered back.

"How long?" asked Weiss.

"H-How long what?" she asked back.

"How long have you've known him?!" she shouted.

"Him? Him who? I don't see any him." Blake attempted to say.

"You know DAMN well who I mean, Belladonna." snarled Weiss. "Jaune Arc! The child fighter that defeated the five-time Mistral Regional Tournament champion, Mr. Satin, with a single punch!"

"Oh, is that who that was? I-I had no idea...Weiss? W-What are you doing with Myrtenaster?" Blake asked.

"You're going to tell me everything you know or else I'm going to have a new familiar to summon." Weiss threatened.

Elsewhere...

"Did you get there safely, Lie?" asked a distraught An.

"Yes, mother, Nora and I are here and we are fine." said Ren, a ghost smile on his lips.

This seemed to at least sooth the worried mother's worry.

"Good, I worry so much about the two of you. I don't know what I do without my little Lie and little spark." said An, smiling as Ren's face began to redden from embarrassment.

"Mother, please." said Ren.

"Speaking of Nora, where is she?" asked An, causing Ren to look around for her only for said girl to clump onto his back, her cheeks spread by her widening smile.

"Hiya, Auntie An!" exclaimed the ginger girl.

"Hello, my little spark. Was Lie a perfect gentleman to you?" the mother asked.

"As always, Auntie! Ren even promised to make some pancakes if I do a good job! You hear that Auntie? Pancakes!" shouted Nora, the volume of her voice nearly bursting Ren's eardrums.

"That's sounds nice, Nora. But remember I'm expecting results by the time you graduate." said An, sending a wink towards Nora, who returned it with a thumbs up, leaving only Ren confused.

"What do you mean, mother?" Ren asked only for his mother brush it off as a chime rang from her end.

"Oh, looks like I've gotten another patient. Remember to call us tomorrow morning. I love you both, so, so, much." said An.

"We love you too, mother." said Ren.

"Love you, Auntie An! Say "hi" to Uncle Li!" shouted Nora.

"Will do!" said An, ending the call.

Ren smiled watching his friend list off everything she was going to do at Beacon. He couldn't believe just how long she'd been apart of his family's lives. At first everything was strange, having someone new in their home and most of the time Nora would hardly say a word, but after some time and understanding Nora was able to break out of her shell and be who she was.

Of course there would times when he and Nora would argue or have embarrassing moments like most families. But eventually life with Nora just felt...right. As if she always meant to belong.

Then both Ren and Nora had decided to become Huntsman in order to give back to the world and become heroes like him. This caused the both of them to turn towards Li Ren and it was not an easy slope. Li was very much a learn-on-the-job mentor, often sending them into the forest to combat against the Grimm but always staying nearby in order to protect them. But after many years of training the two were accepted into Beacon Academy, a decision his mother was very much against but after hearing their determination and reason reluctantly allowed it.

"Hey Ren?" asked Nora.

"Yes, Nora?" Ren answered back.

"Do you think we'll ever see Jaune, again?" she asked.

This question bothered Ren, he hadn't spoken to Jaune in years but had heard of the many heroics he had accomplished.

One such accomplishment was defeating Mr. Satin in the Mistral Regional Tournament in one punch. Further signifying him as a powerful hero in both Ren's and Nora's eyes.

It was one of the reasons Ren wanted to be a Huntsman. To be as strong as Jaune and to be able to face any danger no matter the fear he felt.

You could say that Ren viewed Jaune as a role model and a rival.

"I hope to, Nora." he replied as they walked into the atrium and past a girl with long red hair, who was searching the crowd.

"It's pointless...He's not going to be here...No, he has to be here...But what if he isn't here?" Pyrrha mentally told herself.

It had been several years since she saw him, the man she fell in love with. she could still remember the sound of his voice, like a velvet blanket wrapping around her. And then his beautiful ocean blue eyes, that she could stare into for hours on end. But what she loved most of all was when she'd get to see his pulsing muscles and determination during their fights.

Her love only continued to grow when she witnessed his true strength against Mr. Satin. It showed her the strength he possessed and the gap between them and for some reason Pyrrha couldn't help but find this attractive.

To see her love standing atop a mountain of slain Grimm and defeated opponents filled her with such desire that she'd often wake from her dreams in a pool of sweat.

But sadly even after he and his father had left, this didn't put a damper on her training with her mother, in fact it only increased.

Soon she was fighting against wave after wave of Grimm. Training atop mountains, meditating under waterfalls, and under constant attacks from her mother until the day of Mistral's Regional Tournament came again, only this time Pyrrha had won the tournament and with it came fame, fortune, and sponsorships. And then she won a second time then a third and her fame, fortune, and sponsorships continued to grow but in exchange...she had lost herself. The people of Mistral, no longer viewed her as Pyrrha Nikos, the girl, but of Pyrrha Nikos, the invincible girl.

Soon people wanted to be around her solely to feed their own inflated egos. No one cared if she was the same as everyone else, she was atop a pedestal with no way off.

She had long for an escape from the misery of fame. All she wanted was to go back to before anyone ever knew about her...To go back and see the only friend she ever made...The only man she ever fell for.

It had months later that Pyrrha was able to convince her mother to allow her to attend Beacon Academy, if only to finally rid herself of the fame and finally be herself. Of course her mother had agreed to this but only if she had managed to land a single strike on her mother.

It had taken days, weeks, months, but she was finally able to land a strike on her mother. And with it Pyrrha was able to be who she wanted to be and escape Mistral to start her new life in Vale.

Unfortunately, it had appeared that her fame had caught up to her as no one in the crowd of students wanted to be near her. Not because she was disgusting or anything the like but because no one viewed themselves worthy of talking to her. Soon she found herself a nice little corner and stood there waiting for the lecture to begin.

Just then the headmaster of Beacon Academy came on stage, holding his cane

"I'll...keep this brief. You have traveled here today in search of knowledge, to hone your craft and acquire new skills, and when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But I look amongst you, and all I see is wasted energy, in need of purpose, direction. You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you to take the first step. In other news, I would like to personally introduce everyone to very special applicant...Mr. Jaune Arc. Though you may all remember him as...the boy who defeated Mr. Satin." finished the headmaster smirking as the crowd of students began murmuring about Jaune Arc.

In an instant the crowd began to split apart making way for a boy with blonde hair and blue eyes and a scowl on his face.

"You're a dead man, Ozpin." said Jaune, glaring up at the headmaster.

But before Jaune could do anything a tap on his shoulder brought his attention to...Pyrrha.

"Pyrrha? What are you doing here?" Jaune asked only for the red- headed amazon to suddenly wrap her arms around him.

"You're here. You're actually here." said Pyrrha.

Seeing nothing else, Jaune hugged her back with a soft smile.

"It's nice to see you, Pyrrha. You've grown, you're nothing like that girl I met all those years ago." said Jaune.

"She's not the only one, Jaune-Jaune." said another voice, this one belonging to...Nora and standing beside her was Ren.

"Nora? Ren? You're both here too?" he asked.

"Did you really think we'd let you go on adventures without us?" she asked.

"It's nice to see you both, especially you Nora. Is Li and An treating you right?" asked Jaune, though he already knew the answer.

"Yep! See I have pictures of us all going to the zoo and seeing the sloths!" she exclaimed, showing him said pictures.

"And Ren, you've certainly changed." said Jaune, placing a hand on Ren's shoulder.

"I owe it to you, Jaune. You showed me what it meant to be a hero." said Ren.

"You don't owe me anything, Ren. You were always a hero even when you didn't know it." he replied back.

Only to once again be tapped on the shoulder by another hand, this one belonging to...Weiss and standing just behind her with a blush and folding ears was Blake.

"Greetings, Mr. Arc. My name is-" she started.

"Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Schnee Dust Company, I've heard of you." said Jaune.

"Yes, well, I hope I am not interrupting anything but I would like to personally introduce you to my good friend...Blake Belladonna." said Weiss, quickly stepping to the side to reveal Blake, who was decidedly quiet as she stepped forward.

Nervousness took hold over her as she tried to say anything to him when she felt a familiar pat on her head, causing her to look up into his warm blue eyes and soft smile.

"It's good to see you, Blake." said Jaune.

"It's nice to see you too, Jaune." said Blake, her Faunus ears perking up in joy.

But once again the happy moment was cut short by a resounding shout followed by a massive amount of killing intent at the sight of multiple girls standing too close to Jaune for one blonde's comfort.

"So, JAUNE, mind telling me how you know all of these...girls?" said Yang through clenched teeth, her lilac eyes slowly turning red.

"Well if it helps, Ren is actually a guy." said Jaune, attempting to find a way out.

"It doesn't." said the blonde.

"I figured as much." said Jaune.

And while the group of students began to talk amongst themselves, Glynda saw a small smirk of her employer's face. "I can already tell this is going to be a very irritating year."


	13. Competion, Part One

**Greetings everyone and here is the thirteenth chapter of "Gun X RWBY" Check back next Sunday on the 25th of March for the sixth chapter of "The Knight The Wizard." I'm really glad you guys are enjoying this story so far, and this new scheduling has really helped me out especially since my job has gotten so much busier due to the season change. Thank you all for dealing with my crazy changes and I hope you continue to read along with me on these stories' journey.**

 **Till next time!**

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Chapter Thirteen

It didn't take a genius to figure out Yang was in a sour mood but if there was anything Ruby learned in her days as Yang's younger sister it was this: DO NOT ATTEMPT TO DIFFUSE HER! So she didn't and instead chose to continue writing her letter to her friends back at Signal. She wondered what they were all up to right now; Were they happy for her or were they jealous? Were they placing bets on how long she would last? Maybe attending Beacon early wasn't such a good idea after all, especially with Yang being the way she was.

But on the bright side, at least Jaune was back in their lives AND was attending Beacon too! Turns out he was invited to join Beacon on the same day as her! How crazy was that?! Ruby could still remember all the fun times she'd have with Jaune as a kid; sometimes they'd go on walks or play at the playground or even eat cookies and watch cartoons. But her favorite thing was laying down for a nap while Jaune read one of her fairy tales.

Things just weren't the same after Jaune left them to go on some "journey". And while Yang decided to fill in for Jaune it just wasn't the same. She felt safe with Jaune, not to say she didn't feel safe with Yang, it was just...Better?

Whenever he was near she felt happy like someone had made her favorite cookies on her birthday and got her a new modification kit for Crescent Rose. And when he was gone, she felt as if someone had taken away her beloved hood...She just felt as if a piece was missing from her.

That was why she was thankful Jaune was back home, where he belonged and even more so attending Beacon with her and Yang.

Although, Yang did have some problems with it, especially after Jaune introduced them to his friends. Blake was...strange. Sometimes she'd seem like two completely different people; one minute she's this cool and mysterious ninja catgirl and the next she'd be this shy and talkative catgirl. And it only seemed to be whenever Jaune was nearby, it was really weird but Ruby liked her well enough.

Then there was Pyrrha and though she was embarrassed to admit, Ruby did feel a little starstruck when Jaune introduced them. She went into her trademarked "Weapons Otaku Mode" asking her about her weapons, her armor, and just generally being well...Ruby. Thankfully, Jaune was able to calm her down and she and Pyrrha talked most of the time about their enjoyment of fighting and then she learned that Pyrrha couldn't beat Jaune either! A three time champion wasn't even able to beat her childhood friend. Well she guessed it wasn't that big of a surprise, how is anyone supposed to beat a guy who defeated the legendary Mr. Satin with a single punch and at the age of 7 too!

The she met both Ren and Nora and boy were they a ton of fun! They were like polar opposites in comparison. Where Ren was calm and collected, Nora was wild and hyperactive! Where Ren enjoyed reading and tea, Nore loved explosions and lots of soda! And it turns that we have the same favorite soda...PEOPLE LIKE GRAPES SODA! And she said that after initiation tomorrow she and Ruby can work on upgrading her weapon! She was thinking about adding some rocket propulsion system for added force or maybe a remote detonation system.

But then...there was Weiss...Ugh.

Look, don't get her wrong. Weiss is...a nice person? But she's a bit too...what's the word? Oh, yeah, bossy! "Don't stand too close!", "Don't shake that!", "Don't eat something that's touched the ground!" It was a double chocolate chunk cookie with chocolate frosting and it was on the ground for like 2 seconds! Has no one ever heard of the 5 second rule?!

Sorry...got a little...heated.

Won't happen again...probably.

Anyway, Weiss was more or less this...princessy-type girl. Someone that seemed like she belonged in a giant tower with an evil Grimm Dragon waiting for the knight that would swift her off her feet...Except that the dragon would already be dead and the princess would long gone. But even Ruby was happy to admit that it was nice seeing someone like Weiss being friends with Blake. After all she knew about the whole Faunus Labor stuff and the SDC being bad so she was happy that despite all of that the two of them were still friends.

But all in all she had admit it was an amazing day so far.

As for her older sister, well...turning her head to see Yang's red eyes, clutching her legs together as she glared at Jaune's general direction, who was currently being swarmed by his "fans."

"It's uh...like a big ole slumber party, huh Yang?" asked Ruby but receiving no answer in return.

Yang always acted this way whenever some girl would start hanging out with Jaune. And while Ruby didn't have anything personal against it, Yang, however, did. She'd often get into fights over it to the point of Jaune needing to step in just to calm her down.

"Hey, you want to know what I'm doing?" No answer back. "I'm glad you asked; I'm writing a letter to the gang back at Signal. I promised to tell them all about Beacon and how things are going, so embarrassing, right?" she asked but still received no answer.

It wasn't until she noticed yang's head perk up at the sight of two girls, both seemingly pressing their chests up against Jaune's arms.

"Oh, hell no." said Yang, pushing herself up and stomping over to where Jaune was being coddled by the two girls.

"So, tell us, handsome. Are you single?" asked one of the girls.

"Yeah, got any special girl in your life?" asked the other.

And while Jaune was tempted to say a variety of words to the two girls, he left that action to Yang, who had grabbed both of the girl's ponytails and yanked them off of his arms before standing in between them.

"Back off, he's mine." said Yang, glaring at the two girls through her red eyes as she gripped Jaune's wrist and pulled him away from the two girls.

"Thanks. Not sure what I would've done if you hadn't shown up." said Jaune but much like Ruby, he, too, didn't receive an answer from the blonde bombshell. "Yang, are you still upset over what I said this morning? I said I was sorry, what more do you want?" he asked.

Even if Jaune didn't look it, he did genuinely feel bad about upsetting Yang and he could tell that something was bugging her.

Turning his head, he spotted a nearby balcony and wrapped his fingers around yang's wrist, pulling her outside. The two stood in silence for minutes on end. The broken moon shining down upon them as the stars above shined ever so brightly.

"Go ahead." Jaune said, motioning for Yang to begin.

"Why did you really leave?" she asked, watching him for any sign of lying.

"I needed to get stronger...To protect you and Ruby and everyone else I cherish." he replied.

"Stronger? That's why you left us? To get stronger? Do you realize the pain you put us through? Ruby didn't stop crying for weeks! Dad hasn't been the same since Summer died and Qrow's too busy getting drunk and chasing skirts to do anything! I had to take on everything just take care of Ruby! And where were you? Off exploring the world probably fucking some random sluts like that Nikos bitch!" shouted Yang.

"SHUT THE FUCK UP!" Jaune shouted, shocking Yang out of her rant. He red eyes widening in shock as fleck of lilac appeared in her irises. "You can insult me all you want. Hit me, call me every fuckin' name under the sun, but don't you EVER insult Pyrrha or any of my friends EVER AGAIN!" he finished shouting.

Silence came between the two, both unwilling to speak.

Jaune released a sigh, his breath visible in the cold night air.

Why was it so difficult to express her feelings? Why did she have to take it out on those that cared about her? Yang always hated that about herself, she could still remember the amount of arguments she'd have with her dad about his distancing away from them after Summer died. "I'm sorry...That wasn't cool of me to say. I shouldn't have said that about Pyrrha or you. I've known you for years and I know you'd never do something like that...I'm sorry."

"No, I'm sorry. You're right, I did leave you guys alone...It wasn't right. I should've explained myself and talked about it but I didn't..."

"Did you know that Summer wasn't my real mom?" she asked suddenly, looking up at Jaune with her arms crossed and leaning against the railing of the balcony. "I found out a few months after you left, in the attic. It was an old picture of dad, Summer, and Uncle Qrow during their "glory" days at Beacon. Except there was this woman with red eyes and black hair. It was as if I was looking at myself with a different color palette. It didn't take me long to figure out that this woman was my mother and Summer wasn't. Don't get me wrong, I love Summer. She was like super mom but it always felt like I wasn't her's, you know? I knew dad wouldn't tell me anything and Qrow was barely ever around for me to ask so I had to figure things out for myself. I notice there was this cabin in the background and believe it or not I knew where it was. I thought if I could make it to that cabin then maybe I could find a clue to where my mom was." said Yang.

"What would you've done if you did find her?" Jaune asked.

"Honestly, I don't know. Maybe I'd ask her why she abandoned us. Did she even love me to begin with? Was I a mistake? Or maybe I'd just punch her in her jawline and leave...I don't know. But as you can tell, I didn't find her that day and worst of all...I put Ruby in danger. I was so stupid, I brought her along for some damn stupid reason and we were attacked by a pack of Beowolves. Luckily, Qrow was there to save us. That day taught me a lesson, I was never going to let my dumb mistakes hurt those I love and that I wouldn't let my search for my mother take over my life. I don't know if I'll ever find her...Of if she even wants me to find her. But I can't give up...I have to find her." said Yang, looking into Jaune's eyes with determination and stepping up to him, her height standing just below his, causing her to look up into his eyes. "I don't expect for you to understand...I'm not even sure I want you to understand but I have to ask...Otherwise it'll just eat at me forever. Jaune...Will you help me find my mother?" asked Yang, her heart thumping a mile-a-minute.

Would he say no? Would he say yes?

"Yang, you've been my friend ever since we were children and you've been by my side through it all. It may take a long time but I have no doubt that you'll find your mother someday and on that day, I can only hope that I'm there beside you through every step of the way." said Jaune, talking to Yang as he would any other girl in his previous life.

Unfortunately, Yang was not the same as her cheeks began to redden until her entire face was red.

"Um, cool! Great even! Good to hear! I'm uh...going to uh...sleep! Yeah, sleep! You know how important sleep is right! Early to bed early to rise as they say! GOODNIGHT!" she suddenly shouted, quickly racing off to her sleeping bag and leaving Jaune alone on the balcony.

"Glad to see she hasn't changed too much...She needs you, Raven...And whether you believe it or not, you need her too." said Jaune, watching the lights of Vale flicker in the distance as a Raven's caw rang through the night sky.

Thankfully, the rest of night was uneventful. Jaune was finally able to get some rest after listening to Ruby argue with Weiss over her "late night cookies". Unfortunately, his morning routine was put on hold due to be trapped by a sleeping quartet of girls; Yang, who was draped over the left side of his chest with her own bouncing mounds glued to his cheek, Pyrrha, who took the left side of his chest with her own breasts resting atop his head, Ruby was wrapped tightly around his left leg and mumbling about cookies, and Blake was curled up on his right leg with her feline ears twitching ever so slightly and mumbling something about ninjas.

Why was it always like this? Was he some kind of personal body pillow for these girls?

For the moment, Jaune resigned himself to being trapped. Not because he wanted to but because he's been in this situation before and it never turned out well. He could still remember the dreaded October of '03, it took hours to get his apartment cleaned after that.

But once again, the world felt the need to kick him when he's down as the click of a camera and a light giggle caught his attention, drawing his eyes to see a smiling Nora holding her scroll and aiming it at the scene.

No words passed between them, only a rapid shake of his head from Jaune and a reply of a rapid nod from Nora.

The ginger drew in a deep breath, her chest raising due to the intake.

"WAKE UP, LAZY BUTTS!"

And in an instant the entirety of the ballroom was a sea of yawning teenagers and to add salt to a fresh wound, four of those teenagers were waking on top of a sighing Jaune. The four each turned to look at the others, Yang to Pyrrha to Blake to Ruby then back to Yang.

And it was in that moment in time that a chill swept over the ballroom and it's source was a blushing but fuming Weiss Schnee, who was glaring at the five of them with rage filled eyes and curling her hands into tightly knit fists.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" the generic snow white screeched, causing the girls to cover their ears in hopes of protecting their ear drums. "Cease this...this...DEBAUCHERY at once!" she shouted.

After a few more minutes of arguing, with the conversation ending with Jaune shouting at the girls to shut the fuck up, the kids all took their morning showers, brushed their teeth, and preceded to dress themselves before walking into the school's cafeteria for breakfast.

If there was a word for breakfast at Beacon Academy it would be...Paradise. At least in the eyes of the kids while Jaune shrugged his shoulders, grabbed his tray of bacon, eggs, grits, and a single pancake and made his way to his seat. But just as he was about to take a bite of his pancake, a magnificent sight drew his eyes to a massive tower of pancake and carrying that tower was...Nora...Of course.

The ginger girl took her seat directly in front of Jaune and sitting on her right was Ren. Soon enough the table was filled with as the others took their placements.

"So, Mr. Arc-" started Weiss before being cut off by Jaune.

"Jaune is fine, Weiss."

"Very well, Jaune. I had this inquiry that I was hoping you could answer."

"I'll certainly try."

"I've done my fair bit of research into the initiation process of Beacon Academy and from the information I've gathered it's safe to assume that we will be granted teams of four. As such, I believe it would benefit us both if we joined together as partners."

No sooner did she say that, several pairs of hands slammed on the table in a huff.

"There is no way I'm letting Jaune be anyone else's partner but mine!" shouted Yang/Pyrrha/Blake before glaring at each other. It was as if there were little sparks of electricity bouncing between them. The cafeteria slowed to a crawl as several kids pulled out their scrolls to begin recording; including Nora.

"Don't I get a say in the matter?" asked Jaune.

"NO!" they all shouted back, Jaune sighing at the result before deciding to eat his breakfast in peace.

"I'm sorry but it is clear that none of you are mature enough to be Jaune's partner, even you Blake, as much as that pains me to say." said Weiss.

"I'm plenty mature. I drink milk." said Ruby, feeling proud of herself.

"Ignoring what my little sister said, I'm going to be Jaune's partner and no one is getting in my way. I already lost my best friend once. I am NOT losing him again." said Yang, glaring at Weiss.

"How about a competition?" asked Ren, speaking up suddenly and causing the others to turn and look at him.

"What kind of competition?" asked Blake.

"A simple one. Depending on the rules set in place during initiation, whoever is made Jaune's partner wins and the others must complete a task set by the winner." said Ren.

"Again, don't I get a say in this?" asked Jaune.

"SILENCE!" shouted Nora, covering his mouth.

"Hmph, very well. I see no reason to back down from a challenge, after all a Schnee doesn't back down." said Weiss.

"We'll see about that, princess." said Yang.

"Then ladies let the "Partnership with Jaune Competition" begin!" shouted Nora as the girls all raised their fists to the air in excitement.

All the while Jaune was glaring at Ren, his temple pulsating from annoyed anger as Ren hid a smirk behind his cup of tea. Even if Ren held massive amounts of respect towards Jaune, he couldn't let him go without a little teasing after leaving them abruptly.

After that whole fiasco, the group walked to their weapon locker to gather their gear and prepare for initiation. Their group was the last to go due to the immense pool of applicants. Each of the group were off at their designated locker, gathering their gear and after finally checking his weapon, Jaune was able to stand at attention when Ruby walked towards him, carrying her scythe behind her.

"Hey Jaune, you ready for initiation?" asked Ruby, tilting on the back of her boots as her red cloak fluttered about.

Jaune couldn't help but smile at the little red hooded reaper. Even when prepared for combat she was still adorable as ever. Silently, he folded up his rifle into it's compact form and hooked it to his belt. "As ready as ever, Ruby. I see you're excited for it."

"Well yeah! Now I don't have to do any of that getting to know you stuff. Now I can just let my sweetheart do the talking." said Ruby, cradling her weapon in her arms like an infant.

"Your "sweetheart"?" Jaune asked in a joking manner as Ruby's cheeks reddened.

"Well yeah...I made her back at Signal Academy. Well, Qrow helped me out from time to time but she's all me. She...um...she started out as a little project...at first. You know, something to keep me occupied after you..."

"Ruby. I promise, I'm not leaving."

"I...I know. It's just after mom died, you weren't yourself...You stopped coming over and everything changed and then you left and..." Feeling overwhelmed with melancholy, Ruby wrapped her arms around Jaune's waist, holding him close. "I don't want to lose you again...I don't want to lose anyone."

"You won't, Ruby. Look, I'm sorry for leaving and I'm even more so after Summer's...death. But I swear on my name, that you will never lose anyone again. Now cheer up or else I'll have to give you the punishment."

Seeing his hand raising, Ruby made for a quick escape, wrapping her arms and legs around her older sister. Her flowing blonde hair nice and wavy as her clothing accentuated her bodily curves.

"Yang! Save me! Jaune's going to do it again!" the little reaper shouted.

"Awwe but you were so cute dressed as a wittle puppy wuppy." said Yang, her lips curling into a cheshire cat grin.

"TRAITOR!" Ruby shouted back and causing Yang and Jaune to start laughing when both Nora and Ren walked up to them. Though walking was a term only applying to Ren as Nora had decided that riding on his shoulders was a better idea.

"Heya, Jaune-Jaune!" exclaimed Nora with glee. "Are you going to use your kick-butt superpower today?"

"Superpower?" asked Yang looking to Jaune for confirmation.

"She means my Semblance. The first time I used it was when I met Ren and Nora back in Kuroyuri."

An audible gasp came from Ruby as she began hopping up and down in front of him.

"You discovered your semblance and didn't tell me?! What is it? What does it do?" asked Ruby, a wide smile on her face.

"It's just your basic physical enhancement semblance. No different from your speed or Yang's strength." said Jaune, hoping to keep his semblance under wraps for future engagements.

"Yeah, if you count being able to fly and make kick butt weapons out of thin air as "basic"." said Nora, waving off his words and making Jaune smack his forehead in a face palm-like fashion.

 _"It's Sabine all over again..."_ thought Jaune as the intercom came to life with an announcement from Glynda Goodwitch.

"Would all first-year students please report to Beacon Cliff for initiation? Again, all first-year students report to Beacon Cliff immediately." said Glynda, cutting the intercom off.

"They're playing our song, kids. Let's cut up the dance floor." said Jaune, turning on his HUD glasses and walking out the doors followed by the others, all dressed and ready for combat.

Outside the school, both Ozpin and Glynda were on standby as the other students took their place on the launch pads. Ozpin's brown eyes roamed over the many applicants and saw their bodies twitch with excitement while their eyes narrowed with determination and focus. The seasonal winds blowing off into the distant forest, where they would find their goals and attend his academy.

"For years, you have trained to become warriors, and today, your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forest." Ozpin started before stepping back to allow Glynda to take over.

"Now, I'm sure many of you have heard rumors about the assignment of "teams." Well, allow us to put an end to your confusion. Each of you will be given teammates...TODAY." stated Glynda.

"These teammates will be with you for the rest of your time here at Beacon. So it is in your best interest to be paired with someone with whom you can work well." said Ozpin, his words having already caused Yang, Pyrrha, Blake, and Weiss to share a single thought.

Jaune.

"That being said, the first person you make eye contact with after landing will be your partner for the next four years."

And just like that, the rules were set in place for the girls; Whomever makes eye contact with Jaune first would be his partner for the next four years. This would determine their lives from then on...Who would win and who would lose?

Yang, the Bombshell Blonde?

Blake, the Shadow Cat?

Weiss, the Ice Queen?

Pyrrha, the Invincible Girl?

Or.

Ruby, the Red Reaper?


	14. Competition, Part Two

**Greetings everyone and welcome to a very, very, special chapter fourteen of everyone's favorite "Gun X RWBY" and considering that today is a combination of Easter AND April Fools then make sure to check out not one but two Chibi Omakes at the end of the story as well as the next update date, which will be placed at the bottom of each update chapter from this point on.**

 **Other than that nothing new to add so onwards!**

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Chapter Fourteen

How did it end up like this?

It was supposed to be a simple initiation for the first-year applicants.

Get to the objective zone. Obtain the objective; codenamed "Relics". And return to Beacon Cliff.

A mission that he had his students run several times a month to keep them on their toes.

Simple.

Easy.

So then why in the absolute in the hell was he facing off against a gigantic fucking bird?

Well, they say every major problem could be traced back to one single mistake and for Jaune that mistake came in the form of his partner...Ruby Rose.

...20 minutes earlier...

Being launched through the air was unfortunately something Jaune had grown accustomed to throughout his previous life to his journey through Remnant and each time came with a new experience. From his first HALO jump without a parachute to the time a Nevermore decided he'd make for a good snack. Each new experience was death-defying and exciting.

This experience was...painful.

It had seemed that Ruby, in her haste, had mistakenly used her Semblance while in flight, resulting in her torpedoing towards Jaune and sending them both crashing into the dense forest. Luckily, Jaune was able to concentrate his Aura into his lower body, cushioning them from the fall and saving their bacon. Unfortunately, this lowered his Aura level by 20 percent, leaving it at 80 percent in the green.

And so now, he stood in the middle of a miniature crater and cradling Ruby in his arms, her tiny arms wrapped around his neck. To anyone watching, it would look like a handsome soldier carrying a desert flower. And it had seemed that Ruby was one of those people. Because the moment her sterling silver met his oceanic blue her usual pale white cheeks began to redden to the point that even Jaune would compare her to a ripe tomato.

And for Jaune, a well known sadist, couldn't leave her without a tease.

"You alright there, Rosebud?" he asked, smirking as she pushed herself out of his arms and pulling her hood over her head, covering her blushing face. Jaune smiled, placing a palm on her covered head, causing her to peek out and stare up at him to which he smiled warmly at her before turning on his HUD and scanning the surrounding area and peaking Ruby's interest.

"Whatcha doin'?" she asked, watching Jaune slowly spin around in order to scan.

"I'm using the scanner in my glasses to check for any nearby hostiles as well as points of interest." he replied.

"And that requires spinning?" she asked, confused.

"My HUD can only scan the area that is currently in view. So, yes, it requires turning in place." he replied again, feeling no less stupid doing it and even more so in front of someone. After finally getting a full scan of the surrounding area Jaune's HUD flared to life with various bits of information. At the top of the HUD was his Aura Level, which showed 85 percent, showing him that his Aura had recharged since they had landed.

"Oh...So, what are those anyway? You said they were a hud?" she asked, feeling curious about Jaune's glasses.

"They're specially designed artificial reality glasses that project holographic information on the lenses, allowing me to process information without the need of a scroll. You could say they're the heads-up display you'd normally see in a video game." said Jaune, inadvertently changing Ruby into her "Weapons Otaku Mode."

"That. Is. So. Cool! What can you do with them? Do they have any special features? Can you remotely control your weapon with them? ARE THEY ALSO A GUN?!" she finally shouted, nearly destroying Jaune's eardrums in the process. An action that Jaune had unfortunately grown accustomed to. And he had to admit it was nice hearing her shout in excitement again.

"In order: They allow me to do basically everything a scroll can do. Scan my surroundings. Check both mine and my allies vitals. Grant me detail information of anything I've scanned, provided there's information about it. And can even allow me to remotely hack almost any device and I can't tell you the number of times it's come in handy. And no, Ruby, they're not a gun. You know not everything has to be a gun, right?" he asked, already knowing her answer.

"Blasphemy!" she shouted, making Jaune chuckle.

"Well, we landed exactly 3.5 clicks from our desired destination and do the noise we drew in from our "landing" we'll be having some unsavory party guests in a few moments. Shall we throw out the welcome mat, Miss Rose?" he asked, smirking as he opened up his rifle with Ruby following suit, cocking her weapon with an excited smile.

"Let's do this."

No sooner had the little reaper said this, a massive horde of Grimm swarmed them but the two made for a leap into the air, firing their rounds into the various Grimm before landing with Ruby becoming a cyclone of death, twirling her scythe and literally cutting the Grimm to pieces. While Jaune began firing into the oncoming Grimm, pocking holes in their bodies before releasing a Dust grenade into the horde, blasting the Grimm and sending them flying into the air. Those that lived were quickly sliced by Ruby.

Eventually, after killing several more Grimm the last ones remaining quickly made their escape, just barely being hit by more of Jaune's and Ruby's rounds. Now the two could have a moment to breathe and gather their thoughts, especially Jaune, who had begun wondering about the influx of Grimm and their increased activity.

It had, at first, appeared to be as business as usual but recently the recent number of Grimm attacks had risen into the thousands, to the point of several villages being destroyed and leading to an increase of kingdom population.

Jaune thought about this but his attention is quickly diverted by a surprise ping on his HUD. The hostiles that had once surrounded them were now gone, no where to be seen which felt both relieving and alarming. In all his years as a mercenary, there was one true phrase; "Worry not for the enemies in sight. Worry for the enemies left unseen." It meant that it was better to have a visible target than one you had no knowledge of.

He'd have to remind himself to look into this development at the end of the day as he closed his rifle and hooked it back onto his lower back, seeing Ruby do the same with her weapon as the two began heading northwest towards their objective.

The two of them walked in silence for a few meters before Ruby opened her mouth, releasing a heavy sigh.

"This is sooo boring. Can't we get there faster?" she asked, sounding like a kid waiting in line.

"You'll be fine. It's not that far, should only take us a few minutes...15 tops."

"But what if we don't make it in time? What if the relics are all gone and we never become huntsmen? What if-" rambled Ruby before being cut off by Jaune clasping his palm over her mouth.

"Ruby, relax. It'll be fine. The basis of the test is to ensure that the applicants have what it takes to become Huntsmen. And you are definitely a natural-born huntress. So just breathe and take a moment to get yourself balanced. Worst case scenario is we fail and are kicked out of the school and if that happens, well, you can always join me on my next journey." said Jaune, patting Ruby's head affectionately before walking off with Ruby following close behind.

"You really think I have what it takes? What if I make a mistake?" she asked, looking worried.

"Ruby, there is absolutely no way you could ever make a mistake that would have me question your ability."

...Present...

"I was wrong! This is definitely your worst mistake imaginable!" shouted Jaune, dodging the massive Nevermore's barrage of feathers.

"I'm sorry, okay?!" she shouted back, using her semblance to give her an edge and helping her dodge the feathers.

The massive black bird of death opened it's gaping beak, letting out a screeching wail that sounded throughout the valley before divebombing the two huntsmen and just barely missing them as Jaune tackled Ruby away from the attack sending them tumbling to the ground but now they had an even bigger problem and it stood directly in front of them. But surprisingly, the Nevermore had instead chosen to watch their movements, an action Jaune's seen in various animals gauging a prey's reaction.

Would they run?

Or would they fight?

As if it even needed to be asked as Jaune unlocked his rifle, quickly loading a magazine loaded with Fire Dust enhanced bullets, and began shooting the rounds into the face of the Nevermore, stunning it as it let out a screech and flapped its wings in pain.

"Ruby! Target the Nevermore's wings and tail and make sure it stays down! I'm going to send up a signal flare for the others!" he commanded, watching as Ruby transformed her weapon into it's scythe mode and began attack the Nevermore, slicing at it's wings while Jaune ran a few meters away, reaching into his jacket and pulling out a miniature flare gun and firing it directly into the sky. The flare bursting into a bright red cloud of smoke, signalling danger.

Now he only had to wait for the others and they could take down this asshole bird.

But, once again the universe showed it's middle finger to Jaune as the others came rushing out of the forest, followed by a gigantic armored Deathstalker.

"Oh come the fuck on!" he shouted in annoyance followed by Ruby shouting back, "Swear!"

Jaune watched as Yang and Nora slammed their weapons into the Deathstalker but the damage remaining minimal due to it's armor, forcing them to retreat further away. The rest of them making their way to Jaune just in time for Ruby to be smack towards them by the Nevermore.

Now they were literally trapped between a rock and a hard place. Except substitute the rock for the Deathstalker and the hard place for the Nevermore.

"So, what the plan Jaune?" asked Yang, she and the others getting into their combat stances while Jaune started coming up with a plan.

 _"If my knowledge is correct then the Deathstalker shoulder share the same basic biology of Earth's scorpions. This would mean that even though the outer shell is tough, it's underside should be vulnerable to attacks. Yang and Nora are clearly the strongest in the group and from what I've gathered Weiss is very adept at Dust manipulation. But we'll still have the Nevermore to deal with...Unless."_ thought Jaune as he reached into his jacket and pulled out a special grenade used by mixing Fire Dust and Lightning Dust to create a flash effect along with a bang to stun opponents, before shouting out to the others. "Flash! Cover 'em!" and throwing it into the air.

The two gigantic Grimm stupidly following the small object out of curiosity only for the small object to explode, releasing a bright flash of light followed by a loud bang blinding the two Grimm and disorienting them, giving the others the perfect chance to escape.

"Alright, everyone head to the ruins! That will only last a few seconds at most!" Jaune shouted, leading the charge away from the two titanic Grimm.

And just as Jaune predicted the two Grimm were able to shake off the effects of the grenade and made haste towards the group with the Nevermore providing air support for the Deathstalker. The group of first-year applicants ran towards the ruins.

"Weiss! Use your Dust to make some obstacles for the Deathstalker. Anything to slow it down!" shouted Jaune.

"Please, this insect is nothing to a Schnee." she replied back, summoning a series of Glyphs along the Deathstalker's path, creating various walls and spikes of ice.

"Pyrrha! Ruby! You're both our long-range specialists, target the Nevermore's wings and eyes. They don't have to hit but make sure it's attention is away from the ground team." he commanded.

"Got it!" exclaimed Pyrrha, she and Ruby taking aim at the Nevermore and firing their rounds into it's wings, causing it to circle back for another feather barrage.

"Ren and Blake, I'm going to need you two to take pot shots at the Deathstalker when it gets close by but stay out of it's attack range. Nora you'll be their main damage dealer. Once you have an opening then give that over grown bug a reason not to fuck with us." commanded Jaune, watching the two black-haired teens used their agility to leap from ice block to ice block, firing a barrage of rounds into the Deathstalker's outer shell, not puncturing it but definitely causing an annoyance to the Grimm while Nora rained down a volley of grenades.

"Guess that leaves you and me, noodle boy." said Yang, smirking and smacking Jaune's back, gaining a smirk back from Jaune. "Hey, how about a little bet on birdbrain over there? Loser has to buy drinks. You in?" asked Yang, triggering Jaune's competitive nature. The ex-mercenary smirking as he activated his semblance, his skin color darkening as his eyes turned red and his blonde hair became white.

"Better get ready for a lifetime of paying my bar tab, bombshell." said Jaune as he and Yang leaped into battle.

...1 hour later...

"Russel Thrush. Cardin Winchester. Dove Bronzewing. Sky Lark." called Ozpin as four boys took their places on stage in front of the audience. "The four of you collected the black bishop pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team CRDL (Cardinal), led by...Cardin Winchester!" announced Ozpin, gaining an ovation from the audience before waving Team CRDL off stage. "Weiss Schnee, Nora Valkyrie, Blake Belladonna, Lie Ren. The four of you collected the white rook pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team RNBW (Rainbow), led by...Weiss Schnee!" announced Ozpin, smiling as Weiss took a bow and Blake placed a friendly palm on her best friend's shoulder in solidarity, while Nora wrapped her arms around an exhausted Ren. The headmaster smiled before waving the team off stage. "And finally: Pyrrha Nikos, Ruby Rose, Jaune Arc, and Yang Xiao Long. The four of you retrieved the white knight pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team JYPR (Jasper), led by...Jaune Arc!" The audience shouting out various cheers for the team before a raised hand from Ozpin silenced them. "But I also have a very importnant announcement to make. Due to they're skills, knowledge, and leadership in the heat of battle, I have decided to name Jaune Arc as my personal protege, in hopes that he will one day become the next headmaster of Beacon Academy!"

And while the rest of the audience cheers over the announcement, only Jaune was left stunned silent, glaring at the current headmaster as a single sentence came into his head.

"I can already tell this fucker is going to piss me off this entire year."

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 **And that ends the fourteenth chapter of "Gun X RWBY", I know this one was a bit shorter but truthfully I just wanted to use it to arrange the team placements, which was not easy in the slightest. Speaking of which congrats to the people who suggested Ruby as Jaune's partner with a resounding 2 point lead over the other suggestions.**

 **Make sure to check back on April 8th for the next chapter of "The Knight The Wizard."**

 **Now onward to the first of two special holiday Chibi Omakes.**

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Gun X RWBY Chibi Omake: Easter Holiday

It was your typical, average, everyday at the Arc household. The birds were chirping and the sun was shining it's warmth down on the island of Patch.

A nice, peaceful, quiet day indeed.

"Get back here Jaune and put on your bunny suit!" shouted from within the house followed by "Get away from me, you crazy psycho!" from the aforementioned Jaune.

Oh yeah...It was Easter.

And Easter meant rabbits.

And rabbits meant Jaune was in for a hell of a holiday.

Suddenly the double doors to the Arc household burst open, revealing a frantic Jaune running from the house as a dark shadow appeared in the smoke. Slowly, the smoke faded away to reveal the Arc matriarch, Iris, holding a blue bunny onsie suit and a psychotic smile on her face.

"Hop all you want my little bunny, I'll still find you." said the crazed-mother before snapping her fingers and in an instant all 7 of the sisters appeared. "You girls know your mission. Bring him to me."

The hunt was on for the Arc family.

But they would soon learn the hidden power of the ex-mercenary, that was Jaune Arc.

Speaking of whom, Jaune was currently making his way through the forest that surrounded the Arc household, always making sure to check back to look out for any pursuers, namely his family.

"Fucking Christ. What is wrong with this family?" he spoke to himself.

"Oh, Jaune, it's only because we love our dear sweet little brother so very much." said a feminine voice behind him, causing Jaune to roll away, narrowly avoiding capture by his oldest sister, Rouge.

Rouge.

Of course the first to one to find Jaune would be Rouge.

And the psychotic smile on her lips did little to calm his nerves.

"Come here my dear little brother and let's get you dressed up for Easter." she said making small motions with her hand, gesturing him to her.

But young Jaune refused to give his oldest sister the satisfaction as he reached into his back pocket, pulling out a small cylinder-like device. If everything went according to plan then this device would be this world's equivalent to a Flash grenade. Blue eyes narrowed on green when he tossed the makeshift grenade into the air, his sister's eyes following the device by mistake.

And with a flash and a bang Rouge was left disoriented while Jaune was able to make his escape, making sure to cross by a very specific tree with an X mark on it's trunk. He had originally created this path in case of an emergency; such as a Grimm horde or a bandit raid...NOT FOR HIS FAMILY!

And yet, here he was using the various traps on his siblings. From trapping Verde and Chiffon in a sticky netting to Clementine, Jazz, and Violet falling into a pitfall. He'd be lying if he said he didn't find their misery hilarious but they weren't the worst of his problems.

No, his problem was the only thing standing between him and freedom in his makeshift bunker.

His main weakness...Chrome.

Ever since Jaune first met his older sister, Chrome, he's been protective of her. From beating up bullies to just spending time with her but there was one thing that Jaune always hated about her.

Chrome had a very, very, dangerous power. And no, it wasn't a semblance. It was her unbelievable cuteness and wrapping Jaune around her finger.

"Chrome. I should've known she'd send you and here I was hoping you'd be absent in the family festivities." said Jaune, already reaching into his back pocket for another flash grenade only to feel nothing. _"Damn, I must've used them up on the others during the escape."_ he thought to himself, carefully watching his sibling for any movement.

"I'm sorry Jaune but you know how mommy gets during the holidays." she apologized knowing full well what her little brother intended to do. "But it would be best to just cooperate and get dressed up."

"Sorry, Chrome, but I've had enough costumes put on to last two lifetimes. There is no way I'm putting on that stupid bunny suit." said Jaune, his eyes widening at the sight of Chrome's watery eyes.

No.

Anything but the watery eyes.

Even in this new life Jaune couldn't escape the watery eyes of children.

"Chrome, please don't cry." he tried to say in order to calm her down but the tears of his sister only continued to flow down her cheeks, causing Jaune to walk over to her to comfort her.

Big mistake.

Suddenly out of nowhere several pairs of hands grabbed at his body, all belonging to his other sisters.

"Sorry Jaune, but sometimes a boy needs to make his sisters smile." said Chrome, smiling that same psychotic smile as the others.

...15 minutes later...

The sound of a camera's click and flash caused Jaune intense amounts of pain on top of the fact that he was a grown man in a child's body dressed in a blue rabbit onsie while his mother and sisters took pictures.

"Oh, Jaune you look so adorable!" awed his mother.

"I have to agree mother, he is simply adorable." agreed Rouge as she and the others giggled at their little brother's humiliation.

All through the holiday, Jaune was forced to remain in that bunny onsie even having to deal with the constant puns and teases from his childhood friends, Yang and Ruby, as well as his sisters taking multiple pictures of him in a bunny suit and throughout the day Jaune could only say one thing.

"I hate Easter."

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Gun X RWBY Chibi Omake: April Fools!

"Happy April Fools Noodle boy!" exclaimed Yang, holding a massive packet of paper titled "Crime PUNishment." Due to his actions in abandoning them in their time of need, Jaune told both Ruby and Yang that he would do anything to gain their forgiveness even if it meant his own life. Though, of course, neither of them wanted him to kill himself but they did want apologies, which was something he was glad to do but there came a price.

For Ruby, it was to bake his homemade triple chocolate chunk cookies with hot fudge dipping sauce and an opprotunity to look over his weapon and equipment.

But for Yang...his apology came in the form of something he'd never wish on his worst enemy.

An entire hour dedicated to listening to terrible puns from Yang Xiao Long.

"Are you ready for your PUNishment?" asked Yang, smiling that stupid cheshire cat grin of her's at the sound of Jaune's painful groan. "Good, then let's start with page one...out of one hundred. What do you call it when Qrow gets scared?"

Another groan from her victim. "I don't know. Why?" he asked, already knowing the answer.

"You get a SCAREQROW!" said Yang.

"I hate you...So much." said Jaune, covering his eyes.

"You know, yesterday I accidentally swallowed some food coloring and to be honest, I feel like I DYED inside." More puns.

"I wish you had died." More quips.

"The other day, Ruby and I was playing baseball and I could've sworn it was getting bigger but then it hit me."

"Oh god, kill me already."

"A friend of mine tried to annoy me with bird puns but I realized that TOUCAN play at the game."

"Seriously, just kill me now."

"You ever tried eating a clock? Well, I'll just say that it's very TIME CONSUMING."

"I would rather be eaten alive by Grimm than suffer this hell."

"When NOTES get in TREBLE, BASS-ically they get put behind BARS. The ALTO-nate PUNishment is to push them off a CLEF and hope they land FLAT on SHARP objects! HAHA!"

"KILL ME ALREADY!"

"I RELISH the fact that you've MUSTARD the strength to KETCHUP to me, Noodle boy."

But Jaune was currently attempting to knock himself off via slamming his forehead into the wall.

"Recently, I've been reading this book about anti-gravity Dust. It's impossible to put down."

SLAM.

"Truth is, I don't trust most stairs. It always feels like they're UP to something."

SLAM. SLAM.

"There's something about subtraction problems that just don't ADD up to me."

SLAM. SLAM. SLAM.

"A friend of mine said she didn't understand cloning. I told her that makes TWO of us."

SLAM. SLAM. SLAM. SLAM.

"I don't know if I just got hit by freezing rain, but it did hurt like hell."

SLAM. SLAM. SLAM. SLAM. SLAM.

"I really wanted to buy a camouflage jacket the other day, but I couldn't find one anywhere."

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 **That's right, I did an entire short omake just to write up terrible jokes!**

 **HAPPY APRIL FOOLS!**

 **Till next time!**


	15. Fairy Tales, Part One

**Greetings everyone!**

 **Welcome to the grand re-opening of "The Master Huntsman"**

 **Make sure to check out my other stories, such as; "Gun X RWBY" if you want to see a different version of everyone's favorite blonde-haired mercenary.**

 **Side Note: Since I've rearranged the team placements this means that the episode "The Badge The Burden" will not be shown. As such, I've done a small time skip to the episode "Jaunedice." I hope you all understand and enjoy the chapter.**

 **Other than that nothing new to add, so...**

 **Till next time!**

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Chapter Fifteen

In ancient times, it was said that a Cardinal was the bishop of the birds, regal and noble. Unfortunately, the aforementioned leader of Team CRDL (Cardinal), Cardin Winchester, was neither of those things. Instead, he was arrogant, bigoted, and just an all-around major asshat. Add on to that was his racist tendencies towards Faunus, despite the great strides they've accomplished in the effort for equality.

Not to mention, his combat skills suck as shown as Jaune took another step back, the spikes of Cardin's mace missing him by a hair. The boy looked absolutely exhausted from all of his flailing around. There were no intelligence behind his attacks, they were just random and wild swings, desperately trying to hit anything in they're path. But with his knowledge and skills, carved through years of bloodshed and war, Jaune was able to dodge Cardin's pathetic attacks with ease.

Hell, the match had drone on for so long that even Professor Goodwitch was close to falling asleep. So it only made sense for Jaune to end the match. So when the moment Cardin's began to raise his mace for an overhead strike, Jaune was quick to react as he caught the bar of the mace before shoving his elbow into the opening of Cardin's armor, making sure to use a small percentage of Aura to empower the strike. The resulting action sending Cardin flying off the arena and implanting into the wall with his Aura being left in the red, signifying that Jaune had won the match.

Again.

And with a heavy, but hidden, sigh from Professor Goodwitch, she then stepped up onto the stage, using her semblance to save Cardin from remaining a wall decoration for the rest of his life. Once he was free, Glynda turned to face her students with both Jaune and Cardin standing at her sides. "Students, as you can see, Mr. Winchester's Aura has now dropped into the red. In a tournament-styled duel, this would indicate that Cardin is no longer fit for battle, and that the official may call the match." said Glynda, sighing as she turned to face Cardin. "Mr. Winchester, it's been weeks now and you've continued to demand matches against Mr. Arc, perhaps it is best you fight someone on your...level of experience. Mr. Arc, you may return to your seat. As for the rest of you, please remember the Vytal Festival is only a few months away! It won't be long before students from the other kingdoms start arriving in Vale, so keep practicing! Those who choose to compete in the combat tournament will be representing all of Vale!" finished the blonde witch just as the school's bell rang out, signifying the end of 1st period and the start of lunch.

And out of the corner of his eye as Jaune was being swarmed by his friends, he caught a glimpse of Cardin shoving one of his teammates out of the way before stomping off towards the cafeteria. Releasing a sigh, Jaune joined his friends in their walk to the cafeteria and after a few minutes of selecting their food of choice all sat down at their regular table and pretty soon Nora was telling the tale of her recent dream...again.

"So! There we were, in the middle of the night..." Nora began before being cut off by Ren.

"It was day." said Ren.

"We were surrounded by Ursai..." said Nora.

"They were Beowolves." mentioned Ren, taking a sip of his coffee as Nora slammed her palms down onto the table with a shout.

"DOZENS OF THEM!" she shouted.

"Two of them." Ren corrected.

"BUT they were no match for us... And in the end, Ren and I took them down and made a boatload of Lien selling Ursa skin rugs." said a very proud Nora while Ren released a heavy sigh, covering his eyes.

"She's been having this recurring dream for nearly a month now." said Ren when Blake decided to speak up.

"That's because you let her consume an entire bottle of maple syrup before bed." said Blake.

"It's the only way to get her to bed." said Ren.

Soon enough, this spawned a conversation about Nora's seemingly addictive taste for anything related to pancakes. But unlike the others, Jaune's attention was drawn to a pissed off Cardin, whose glaring eyes were lingering on a 2nd year student. And not just any 2nd year but Velvet Scarlatina, member of Team CFVY and timid rabbit Faunus.

A feeling awoken inside Jaune as he watched Cardin and his team walk over to the lonely girl, taking seats around her and out of nowhere Cardin made a grab for Velvet's ear, specifically her rabbit ears which sat atop her head, catching her by surprise and causing her pain, to which she released a yelp, gaining the attention of everyone around her, including Jaune's friends.

But no one moved.

Not a single shout was heard nor a single muscle moved to help.

No one, except for Jaune as he made his way over to the would-be bullies. His eyes red from anger and his fist clenched tightly together. Eventually, Jaune's hand gripped Cardin's wrist, squeezing it to the point of releasing Velvet's ear which allowed the girl to step to the side and hold her ear in pain. But Jaune, still holding onto Cardin's wrist continued to glare into the boy's eyes.

And to everyone around them it was like watching a dragon stare down a mouse.

A clear sign of the power difference Jaune had over everyone in the room as his bloodlust was slowly softened.

Cardin's mouth opened to speak but his voice was quickly silenced by Jaune's glare.

"You're pathetic." said Jaune. "You're meant to be a symbol of heroism to all of Remnant. Placing yourself in front of the defenseless against the darkness of the world and instead you use your placement to cause strife for others. Well allow me to tell you one truth... The Grimm don't give a fuck about who you are or of your position. To them you're little more than a meal to chow down on." he finished as he sent the cowering and pissed off Cardin sprawling to the floor in front of everyone. But Jaune's attention was driven towards everyone now as he ignored Cardin's bloodlust. "Let this be a lesson to everyone, the Grimm do not care about your past nor your future! To them we are considered nothing but food and playthings. We are Huntsman! We are the guardians of Remnant's innocence and it is our duty to protect the people from the Grimm and bandits of the world, no matter our personal feelings. If none of you can accomplish this task, then leave this place because we have no use for pathetic worms like this!" shouted Jaune, pointing at the downed Cardin.

Silence fell over the cafeteria as the other students watched the strongest 1st-year speak until a loud bang rang out as a pissed off Glynda came into the cafeteria as her green furious eyes locked onto Jaune. "Mr. Arc. My office. NOW." she demanded, using her semblance to pulling Jaune along with her before slamming the double doors to the cafeteria close and leaving the others in the lunch room.

Silence filled the room once again until a gasp from Nora drew everyone's attention.

"I just remembered, it wasn't a dozen Ursai, it was 300. Silly mistake."

...Ozpin's Office...

After being telekinetically dragged by a pissed off Glynda, Jaune was then placed into the empty seat placed in front of Ozpin's desk, where the headmaster sat in wait, taking small sips of his black coffee before straightening himself and smiling at the irritated Jaune.

"Ah, Mr. Arc, so glad to see you today. I trust you had an enjoyable lunch period." said Ozpin, smiling that troll-like smile of his while Jaune only continued to glare at him. "Personally, I've always enjoyed the sirloin Chef Gustavo would always cook, simply delicious, especially with..."

But before Ozpin could utter another word, Jaune quickly leaped over the table, having brought his trusty combat knife and attempted to attack Ozpin only for a familiar purple Aura to grasp his wrist and pull Jaune upward, dropping his knife, which was then picked up by Ozpin, who then proceeded to look up at his flailing student.

"Was that really necessary? Or perhaps you aren't a fan of expertly made steaks?" asked Ozpin, knowing full well that he adding fuel to Jaune's anger.

"CUT THE SHIT OZPIN!" Jaune shouted, still flailing about due to Glynda's Semblance. "I want some goddamn answers and I want them right fucking now!"

With a nod from her employer, Glynda reluctantly released Jaune midair but due to his own skill was able to land softly without injury. The ex-mercenary turned his glare onto Ozpin, who had nonchalantly walked back to his seat while Glynda stood just off to the side. Despite his own reluctance, Jaune took his place in the empty chair in front of Ozpin.

The two of them sat in silence before Ozpin took a deep breath before beginning his story.

"You're most likely wondering as to why you've been brought here, Mr. Hayama and just how it is that I know your true name. To begin, I'd like to ask you a question... What is your favorite Fairy Tale?" asked Ozpin, causing Jaune to gain a quizzical look.

"Fairy Tales? I don't have time to-" started an angry Jaune before Ozpin decided to cut him off.

"Humor me, Mr. Hayama... Please." said Ozpin, his eyes showing no sign of lying and causing Jaune sigh reluctantly before giving his answer.

"The Tale of the Seven Samurai ... Although it's more fictional than historical, it's still a story I've enjoyed for many years." said Jaune, crossing his arms over each other as Ozpin grew a small smile.

"I don't believe I've heard of such a tale, would you care to regale me with such a story?" asked Ozpin, smiling as Jaune took a deep breath, his mind running wild as he tried to remember the story properly.

"The tale of the Seven Samurai is not one of peace and prosperity but of blood and greed. A village in the mountainous region of Japan was under constant attacks from bandits. In desperation, the village had decided to hire several samurais to protect their village from the bandits' attacks. But due to their low finances none were willing to lend a hand. Eventually, the village is able to find seven masterless samurai and at first, treat them with hostility but soon are able to set aside their differences for the good of the village. However, after several bandit attacks, four of the seven samurai are killed in battle all in order to protect the village. In the end, they succeeded in their job. The farmers were able to celebrate a bountiful harvest but the three remaining samurai are left to reflect on their Pyrrhic victory... Because in the end the samurai lost the battle too. The victory belonged to the farmers... Not them. It is tale that I've always looked upon with favored eyes. Being a mercenary, my job was whatever my employer wanted it to be and often times many of my victories were Pyrrhic ones... But I fail to see how this correlates with your question, Ozpin." asked Jaune, watching as Ozpin took another sip of his black coffee.

"I ask because Mr. Hayama, I believe that Fairy Tales are the reason both you and Ms. Hibachi are here in Remnant. Long ago, there were two brothers, one older and one younger, that ruled Remnant. During the day, the older brother created water, plants, and wildlife. But at night, the younger brother created drought, fire, and famine. Despite the younger brother's efforts to extinguish the life his older brother created, life had a strong ability to endure. So, in a last ditched effort, the younger brother created the creatures of Grimm, monstrous beasts with an innate desire to destroy anything and everything. But eventually the two brothers grew tired of their infighting and sought to create one final masterpiece. They, together, created a creature that was capable of knowledge, creation, destruction, and choice, specifically a choice between light and dark. These creatures came to be known as Humanity. Mr. Hayama, it is my belief that both you and Ms. Hibachi are Avatars for the two brothers." said Ozpin, his words already having an effect on Jaune as his eyes widened before narrowing in disbelief.

"Do I look like an idiot, Ozpin?" asked Jaune, his eyes glaring at the ever calm and collected Ozpin.

"Please, Mr. Hayama, allow me to explain myself before you judge." said Ozpin, sighing as he, too, didn't want to believe it. "The reason I believe this is because it is not the first time two people were brought to Remnant through mystical means. Every 10,000 years, the two brothers would select a new form to take, most commonly a person who has died and is strong enough to hold their overwhelming power. Both you and Ms. Hibachi have these traits. Another reason is that with each new avatar, I am granted a glimpse into their history. It is how I was able to know your true name and the history between both you and Ms. Hibachi." said Ozpi, Jaune's eyes widening is surprise as he stood abruptly from his chair, toppling it over and clattering on the floor.

"Then you know where Sayuri is! Tell me dammit!" shouted Jaune, leaning over the desk and grabbing Ozpin by the collar. A shocked Glynda soon began to raise her weapon, all the more prepared to use her Semblance but a raised hand from Ozpin halted her progress.

"Mr. Hayama, while I share in your desire to put an end to the horrors Ms. Hibachi has caused, I'm afraid that I have no knowledge of her whereabouts. Truthfully, it was a miracle we were able to find you. Despite, the length of time Ms. Hibachi has been in Remnant, she has always eluded our grasp and all the while growing in power." said Ozpin as an aggravated Jaune released his grip on Ozpin's collar before pacing around the room, the office's gigantic gears ticking away above him.

"How long... How long has Sayuri been in Remnant?" asked Jaune, turning his attention towards Ozpin.

"Over 100,000 years..." said Ozpin, matter-of-factly.

"That's impossible, no one could live that long not even her!" shouted Jaune.

"True... But Ms. Hibachi is not a normal human... My vision of her history revealed that she committed various atrocities, from starting wars to torturing children in hopes of gaining power, correct?" asked Ozpin, as Jaune attempted to calm himself down.

"That's right... She started a terrorist organization designed to create child soldiers that would follow her every desire... Even at the cost of their own lives." said Jaune, frowning at the memory of seeing a little girl with her whole life ahead of her, used for nothing more than a suicide bomber by the very older sister she had once trusted.

"It is my understanding that the reason for Sayuri's extended lifespan is due to her Semblance... A cruel fate for those in her cross-hairs... Her semblance grants her the ability to absorb a person's Aura, gaining their knowledge, skills, Semblances, and... their life-force." said Ozpin, frowning as his eyes narrowed on the center of his desk while Jaune watched on with wide eyes before snarling.

"As much as it pains me to admit it... it definitely fits her personality... So, if you don't know where she is then why did you bring me here?" asked Jaune, picking up the chair and taking a seat when Ozpin placed a file on the desk titled "The Four Maidens."

"Inside this file is everything you will need to know about the history of Remnant. We have reason to believe that the reason Ms. Hibachi has continued to live for so long is in hopes of forcibly absorbing the Maidens' powers, thereby granting her access to the four Relics. With them... she'd be unstoppable. I know you do not trust me, Mr. Hayama. But believe me when I say that I want the best for Humanity even if I am cursed to watch it burn for centuries I will always try to save what little I am able to. I can only hope that you share these same views..." said Ozpin, watching as Jaune took the file and stood from his chair. "You're current assignment is watch over Ms. Nikos... If worst comes to worst, then we may need her assistance. That will be all, Mr. Arc." said Ozpin as Jaune began walking towards the elevator only to be stopped once again by Ozpin. "Oh, and Mr. Arc? Good job on protecting Ms. Scarlatina."

And with a silent nod from Jaune, the ex-mercenary entered the elevator, taking it down to ground level and leaving the sanctity of Ozpin's office while he began to read through the file given to him.

"The Four Maidens...Winter, Spring, Summer, and...Fall."


	16. Fairy Tales, Part Two

**Greetings everyone!**

 **Welcome to the 16th chapter of "The Master Huntsman". I hope you're all excited for this new chapter as it will be continuing from where we last left off. I meant to post this yesterday but ended up forgetting about it due to Sunday chores., so here it is now.**

 **And I just wanted to say that I'm so freaking happy that you guys are enjoying the first chapter of my future story "The Arcful Dodger", if you haven't read it then I implore you to do so and check it out for yourself.**

 **And sad to say, but I've decided to just leave "The Last Samurai" as a historical/fictional one shot. But if any of you guys like the idea and want to make your own story then more power to you.**

 **MAY 2018 Scheduled Release Dates:**

 **May 6th: "Don't Mess With An Arc - Ch. 03"**

 **May 13th: "Gun X RWBY - Ch. 03"**

 **May 20th: "The Master Huntsman - Ch. 17"**

 **May 27th: "The Arcful Dodger - Ch. 02"**

 **Other than that, nothing new to add, so...**

 **Till next time!**

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Chapter Sixteen

"The Four Maidens...Winter, Spring, Summer, and...Fall." Jaune said aloud, his blue eyes roving the file's cover before folding it under his arm, keeping it tightly close to his body as he began walking towards the academy's library, knowing full well that he would be skipping out on his other classes but his focus was needed on his latest assignment.

But it wasn't just the Four Maidens that had Jaune feeling anxious; it was Ozpin's theory on Jaune and Sayuri being the Avatars of two all-powerful beings, or the brothers as Ozpin had called them. And while a portion of him wanted to do nothing more than call bullshit on Ozpin's theory, he could not deny that it was a possibility, albeit a very rare and slim possibility.

Plus, if he remembered correctly there was the religion of Hinduism where some of the gods would traverse the realms in a mortal form, also known as an "avatar." Which would also support his theory on his reincarnation. But once again, these were just theories and as such it would be extremely difficult to test them. But for now, he would put those theories on the back burner and focus his attention on the files he received from Ozpin.

And so, he walked on towards the library, the hard floor clacking beneath his dress shoes that he wore with his school uniform. His mind abuzz with activity as he thought over his conversation with Ozpin.

Soon enough, he came upon the mahogany double-doors of the academy's library, a place where students could spend their time studying the anatomy of Grimm, the history of their kingdoms, or, if you're like Nora, a nice, quiet place to sleep. But Jaune wouldn't be sleeping on this day as he placed his palm against the right-side door, pushing it open before making a beeline towards the library's personal computers.

Placing the file down to the side, Jaune took his seat in front of the holographic computer and input his login and password, both were automatically assigned to his student account via the school. But as he was inputting the final digit of his password, a pop-up box appeared on his screen reading out, "Computer B-5 has been granted administrative action...Login: MH1304...Password: Humanity." Jaune's eyes narrowed on the mysterious pop-up before reluctantly inputting the given login and password before having widening eyes as the computer forcibly shut itself down and Jaune found himself staring at a black screen in confusion.

But just as he was about to leave from his spot, the computer suddenly sprang back to life with a strange symbol on the screen and a list of instructions, each one pointing him in a specific location of the library, most likely to obtain research materials that he'd be using along with the papers in the file.

Afterward, upon receiving the instructions and obtaining the selected parchments and books, Jaune was more than prepared to begin his research. His fingers surfed the rough file's edge, pulling it open to reveal the stapled selection of papers titled, "The Four Maidens: A Tale of Four Seasons" with the collection of papers all detailing the supposed magical properties the Four Maidens received from a mysterious wizard and once again, Jaune wanted to do nothing more than burn these papers and Ozpin along with them. But he quickly quelled his irritation as he selected the desired book, on Remnant's deities, the Brothers of Light and Dark.

 _"Long ago there existed two brothers, one older and one younger. The older was worshiped due to his creations; water, wildlife, and flora while the younger was hated due his creations; drought, fire, and famine. The two of them warred with one another for millennia, forever in a stalemate. Eventually, the younger brother, growing tired of his older brother's creations, created the Creatures of Grimm, a race of pure hatred and animosity that would destroy anything in their path. However, after years of feuding the two brothers eventually came to an agreement, they would, together, create a race of beings, known as Humanity, capable of obtaining knowledge, with an affinity for both creation and destruction, but most importantly, they would gifted with the power to choose what path they would take; light or dark. The brothers would then create physical representations of these gifts as a test for Humanity to see if they were better than their creators. A religion was then formed around the two brothers that believed that one day the two brothers would return to the realm of mortals and select their chosen few to complete the test and decided whether Humanity would granted godhood or be destroyed by their own sins."_ Jaune read to himself, his eyes following the scribble of words on each page. _"So, these "brothers" are the representation of Yin and Yang of Asian culture and these gifts they bestowed upon Humanity were meant as a test, to which the brothers would take on mortal forms and select a group of mortals to undergo their tests. I can only assume this meant as a final competition in order to see what path their creations would eventually take."_ he thought to himself before closing the book and switching over to another, this one detailing the story about the Four Maidens and the four seasons they represented, The Story of the Seasons. _"Many years ago, there lived an elderly hermit in a desolate shack in the wilderness. One day a mysterious woman appeared, named Winter, who asked the hermit if she could rest and await her sisters arrival. The hermit agreed but denied the woman access into his home. Winter felt sympathy for the hermit and advised him to meditate and reflect on his past decisions. The second sister appeared, Spring, and with joyous and flamboyant energy, helped to revitalize his garden and gifted him with fruit and flowers. The third sister joined later on, Summer, who with charismatic and persuasive words, convinced the hermit to step outside his cabin and embrace the beauty of the world around him. Finally, the last sister appeared, Fall, who encouraged the hermit to be thankful for all that he has and all that he is. When asked why they had chosen him to be so kind to, the sisters replied that their kindness was for everyone who was in need. Moved by their motivation, the hermit revealed himself to be an ancient wizard and gifted the sisters with unimaginable powers so that they may continue to aid others in their endeavors. The sisters agreed to take their gifts with the added promise that once a year they would visit the hermit."_ thought Jaune as he read through the book. His eyes flipping back to the files he obtained from Ozpin. _"So, these sisters were made into the Four Maidens representing each of the four seasons. And Ozpin mentioned that Sayuri was most likely in search of these girls in order to gain their powers and unlock the Relics gifted to Humanity by the brothers. The files also mention another being in search of these, Salem, the Queen of the Grimm, an all-powerful being that wished to wipe Humanity from existence. Could "Salem" be the name Sayuri chose during her time in Remnant?"_ he thought to himselfwhen he felt a hand on his shoulder, his eyes forcing his head as they landed on the bright Amber eyes of his childhood friend, Blake Belladonna, her smile instantly lightening the weight that was on his shoulders.

"I had a feeling you'd be here, Jaune." she said, taking a seat directly across from him, a small booklet in her grip. "Though, truth be told, I thought you'd be here brooding like when we were kids."

And for Jaune, these words coming from the mouth of a girl, who would brood just because she could, caused his mouth to become agape as a deep chuckle escaped his lips, brightening his weary mood and making Blake smile brighter.

"You make it sound like I hate reading." he replied, smirking as she wore a smug-eating smile on her face.

"Not at all. But for as long as I've known you, you've never been the type to stay in one place for long. Most likely preferring to learn through experience and recollection of others... Not through the pages of history books. Speaking of which, care to explain why you're reading about the two brothers? I never took you for a religious type." said Blake.

"I'm not, but I can't deny having no interest in the cultural history behind it. You wouldn't happen to know about these two brothers, would you?" he asked, always willing to hear another's view of a certain subject as it could potentially help him in his endeavors. God knows how many times it ended up saving his scrawny ass in the field.

"Most of what I know is from stories my father told me as a little girl." said Blake, placing her index finger on her chin in thought. "But if I'm remembering correctly then long ago there was a religious following of the two brothers but the name was lost to translation long ago and as far as we know, no one in Remnant follows the beliefs anymore. But it was believed that every few years, the brothers would join alongside their creations in order to learn from them. But other than that, there's not much else. I'm sorry, I wish I knew more but like I said, I only know from my father." she said, frowning and causing Jaune to pat the middle of her head, in between her two cat-like ears and inadvertently causing her cheeks to blush a pinkish hue and a deep rumbling noise to surge from her throat.

She was purring!

And despite being a hardcore, killing-machine, Jaune had one weakness and it was kittens. And boy did Blake make him gush with her cuteness but once again he steeled himself, telling himself the same chant over and over again whenever felt this way towards his companions.

 _"I'm not a lolicon. I'm not a lolicon. I'm not lolicon. I'm not a lolicon."_ he'd constantly remind himself, despite being biologically the same age as his friends, his mind was still that of a 40 year old man. _"I! AM! NOT! A! LOLICON!"_

Luckily, the "petting" was ended when Blake's amber eyes widened in shock as her cheeks became pink from embarrassment. Swatting his hand away while covering her folded ears with a scowl on her lips. "You heard nothing, got it?" she asked, though her tone of voice made Jaune know it wasn't a question, but a demand.

And though he wanted to do nothing more than tease her, he decided to let her off easy and continue his research.

"Why ARE you reading all of these?" she asked, her amber eyes roving the towers of books he created.

"Research." he answered plainly.

"What are you researching?" she asked again.

"Myths. Legends. Fairy tales. Basically anything that may or may not have an honest beginning." he answered again, his own eyes watching each written letter in the book.

"But,why? Those are just stories told to us by our ancestors. Why would you think they'd have some truth to them?" she asked, watching him intently.

Jaune thought about this for a moment or two. While there was evidence to her claim, there was also no evidence that denied it, either. But considering Jaune originally came from a world filled with super-powered beings, add on to the fact that both he and Sayuri were reincarnated in a completely different world, it was best not denounce any theory until you had an opportunity to test it. And so that brought him back to this moment and what Ozpin had said about the two brothers and these Four Maidens as well. From what he's read so far, there might be some truth to these fairy tales, hence the researching.

"True but every lie has sliver of truth." he said plainly, remembering the myths and legends he heard back in his own world. Only now, he was starting to think that they, too, might've held some truth as well.

"How do you figure that?" she asked, appearing to be very eager to speak despite remaining silent elsewhere.

"With every story there will always be exaggerations. And with each re-telling, the story becomes muddled until there is nothing but exaggerations and little truth." he answered.

"So, you think that these myths might've been real?" she asked, her own eyes wandering the page he was currently reading.

"I don't think anything. I'm just interested in the history behind them." he said, his own words causing Blake to cover her mouth in an attempt to silence her giggles.

"Sorry, it's just the only thing I've ever seen you so passionate about was fighting, well maybe not with Cardin but you get my meaning."she said, releasing her giggles and causing Jaune to begin chuckling along.

The two sat in a gentle silence as their laughter subsided, both with a pleasant smile on their faces.

"How long has it been since we last laughed together?" he suddenly asked, watching as her bright eyes became melancholic.

"10 years... After you and your family left Menagerie... I didn't know what to do, you were the first Human I ever met that didn't care about my heritage, instead you embraced them and you treated me like an equal. I went about each day fearing you'd forget about me or worse treat me like a monster." she said, frowning and curling her fingers into a tight fist.

"I could never forget you, Blake." said Jaune, smiling the same innocent smile Blake had dreamt about for years since her last meeting with the young blonde.

His perfectly, white, dazzling smile was enough to cause Blake's cheeks to take on a pinkish hue but for some reason she made no effort to hide them. Much like her ears, she was not afraid to so Jaune her true self even if others did not. He was that important to her. Cautiously, her hand reached out to his, her heart beating a mile-a-second with each twitch of her fingers.

"Jaune... There's something I want to say." she bravely said, swallowing her own air as she tried to steel herself. His blue eyes looking into her amber ones. Her ears twitching at the slight breeze in the library.

"What is it, Blake?" he asked, curious as to what she would say.

"I...I..." But before she could say anything, the school's final rang true, signalling the beginning of their final class and stopping Blake's would-be confession. "I'll see you back in class." she said, putting on a fake smile before walking away, leaving Jaune alone with his thoughts.

After gathering his supplies and his composure, the ex-mercenary wandered off towards his final class, unaware that a certain bird was watching his movements.


	17. Crossfire

**Greetings everyone!**

 **So, I wanted to get this chapter of "The Master Huntsman" out before my trip out of state because I didn't want you guys waiting for so long. I've written up an entire chapter with what little time I possessed and I've mashed the episodes of "Jaundice, Part 2" through "Forever Fall, Part 2" and as such this chapter is significantly longer. I meant to have Chapter 16 included in this chapter but as you can see that didn't exactly go according to plan.**

 **I hope you all enjoy the chapter anyway and make sure to Favorite, Follow, and leave a Review**

 **Next Scheduled Release Date:**

 **May 27th: "The Arcful Dodger - Ch. 02"**

 **Other than that nothing new to add on, so...**

 **Till next time!**

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Chapter Seventeen

After finally having enough time researching the various fairy tales, myths, legends, and general folk stories of Remnant, courtesy of Beacon's private library, Jaune was confident that it was time to adhere to his classes' scheduling as he carried his files under-armed towards his last class of the day. History of Remnant 103, taught by the renowned Dr. Bartholomew Oobleck. The "doctor" title was given to him after obtaining his doctorate in Archaeology, Anthropology, Geology, and various other forms of scientific and historical research. Jaune always had a strange feeling about the rapid-speaking, blur of a history professor; from his wild and untamed green hair to the circular spectacles to even the strange substance he'd intake from his mug or his thermos. And after a few weeks of attending his class, Jaune was finally able to make the connection...Dr. Oobleck was the spitting image of his own older sister, Verde. It made sense in the long run of things, he always remembered seeing the doctor's photo on his sister's desk, though whenever he attempted to bring it up, she'd always shift the conversation towards another one of her crazy inventions.

But whatever the case may have been, it was time Jaune joined his classmates in the classroom. His palm wrapped around the bronze doorknob of the classroom's door and with a quick twist of his wrist, the door was gently pushed open. After which, Jaune made his way down the steps and took his assigned seat on the left hand side of the classroom. He then placed his important files and document in his school bag before tucking it under the counter-top. The rest of the classroom was soon filled with various other first years, several of which were Velvet, a second-year who after undergoing an injury in the field was forced to make up for lost class credit, Cardin, who was currently trying to burn a hole in the back of Jaune's head, Weiss, Pyrrha, and Blake, who after making a quick glance at his eyes, averted them just as quickly, her feline ears folding back and giving Jaune a strange sensation. Had he done something to upset her again? He couldn't remember saying anything untoward to her during her conversation in the library. But then again, most of his focus was on researching his so-called "Reincarnation" and his "heritage" of being the avatar for one of the godly brothers.

Don't get him wrong, there was a very slim chance that what Ozpin had told him had merit. What gave his explanation was the fact that both he and Sayuri were in-fact reborn into the world of Remnant. That only gave Ozpin a leg to stand on as there was very little explanation otherwise. But still, there was little to make Jaune believe that what Ozpin was saying was truthful but considering it was either this or leave his newfound home with very little information on Sayuri's whereabouts, Jaune had decided to go with the lesser of two evils. As the professor for the classroom entered the room from his office off to the side, any form of communication was swiftly silenced by his presence. His usual white long-sleeved dress shirt had three splotches of dried coffee on his left breast while his eyes, which were normally alert were now dimmed and without life and hius usual wild and unkept hair was down straight and down.

Class always began this way with the good doctor exiting his office with bags under his eyes and a slouched body, indicating the numerous hours he had spent awake. Most likely researching various fossils and ancient texts in hopes of learning more about Remnant's history. Which was also something Jaune had found himself enjoying during his life in Remnant, because the more one knew about history, the less of a chance they had of repeating it.

With the great speed of a sloth, the green-haired history professor wrapped his fingers around the ceramic mug of piping hot coffee that sat on his desk. And at a snail's pace, he raised the mug to his awaiting mouth. The class stared in silence as the liquid black and brown muck entered their professor's mouth, lathering his tongue with bitterness. And in an instance, all form of sleep deprivation was vanished in the blink of an eye as even his straightened hair was quick to react to the coffee's magic as it poofed back into it's usual crazy form. And still under the drink's high concentration of sugar, the professor's mouth stood agape as a flurry of words exited his maw like a rapid-fire automatic large-caliber machine gun, only stopping to answer the question of Velvet Scarlatina, who's arm was currently in the air.

"Yes, Ms. Scarlatina! What is your question?" asked Dr. Oobleck.

"Um, could you repeat that sir?" asked Velvet, asking the same question everyone had been thinking.

Yep, just another average day in Dr. Bartholomew's history class.

After finally getting the hyper-active professor time to calm down from his caffinated ride and repeating his barrage of words, the class was back in session as the doctor spoke more about the Faunus Rights Movement. His legs never stopping as he blurred from side-to-side of the classroom, the various other classmates struggling to keep up to his ridiculous speech pattern and even more crazy hyper-speed movement.

"Yes! Yes, prior to the Faunus Rights Revolution, or more popularly referred to as the Faunus War, humankind was quite adamant about centralizing the Faunus population in Menagerie, which is now a bustling continent that is well on it's way to becoming the fifth kingdom of Remnant and all in thanks to the diplomatic rule of Ghira Belladonna." said Dr. Oobleck, taking another quick sip of his black and brown lava before pointing back at his board, which was covered with various maps, documents, and pictures. "Now! While this must feel like ancient history to many of you, it is imperative to remember that these are relatively RECENT events! Why, the repercussions of the uprising can still be seen to this day!" said Dr. Oobleck, taking another sip of his ceramic mug. "Now! Have any among you been subjugated or discriminated because of your Faunus heritage?" asked the doctor, knowing he entering a tricky subject matter for many of his Faunus students. And even though some were adamant to just keep their feelings of the subject bottled up, several of the more outspoken students slowly raised their hands, two of which were Velvet and Blake.

The sight of seeing his own friend raising her hand was enough to make Jaune pissed off. Even in this new world, there was no escaping racism or discrimination and it was a fact of life he hated desperately. Jaune often wondered what the world would be like if Ghira had gone along with making Sienna Khan the leader of the White Fang. Would it have been better? Would it be worse? He'd never know but as a mercenary, Jaune learned that the if's and the but's were best left after the war. And for the life of a mercenary, the war was never over. It Jaune a moment to realize that Dr. Oobleck had already begun speaking once again.

"Dreadful, simply dreadful! Remember, students, it is precisely this kind of ignorance that breed violence!" said the doctor, raising the mug to meet his waiting lips. "I mean, I mean, I mean, just look at what happened to the Black Hounds! First, they were a rogue cell that had attempted to overthrow the current White Fang but eventually separated to form it's own radical organization. If they had simply looked for another solution then none of this would've transpired. Now, which one of you young scholars can tell me what many theorize to be the turning point in the third year of the war?" asked Dr. Oobleck, a pale white hand belonging to Weiss was the first to acquire his attention. "Yes, Ms. Schnee?"

"The Battle of Fort Castle!" she proudly answered, impressing both Jaune and Dr. Oobleck.

"Precisely! And, who can tell me the advantage the Faunus had over General Lagune's forces?" asked Dr. Oobleck, to which Jaune raised his hand, catching a paper football that Cardin had tried to hit him with. But, unfortunately for Cardin, Jaune was well aware of what the red-haired bigot was trying to accomplish and with a swift mouth and even swifter reflex, Jaune tossed the the paper football back at Cardin, the force causing him to topple backwards while Jaune answered the question.

"The Faunus had a variety of specialized techniques that were used to grant them an advantage over the General's forces. The main factor was their heightened perception in nocturnal environments as well as a detailed understanding of the terrain, a fact that the General mistakenly looked over and leaving him and his forces with prior intelligence. But the advantages did not end there; there were also the various alternate species within the Faunus Army; such as having an extrasensory skill found in many reptilian Faunus, which allows them to sense heat in their targets. Or the Bat Faunus, with it's Echo-Location. And even the common feline Faunus had their advantages over the Human opponents." said Jaune, surprising everyone in the class with his own detailed explanation over the complete and utter loss over the General's defeat and to add insult to injury, Jaune slowly turned his head with a smug but hidden smile as Cardin clambered his way up from the ground. "Perhaps if the General had studied his opponents instead of relying on his overconfidence, he might've understood the problem before it began. Right, Cardin?" asked Jaune, his words causing the other students to laugh at Cardin's expense, who continued to glare at Jaune, raising his fist to strike when Dr. Oobleck spoke out.

"Mr. Winchester, I'd think carefully before raising your fist to another student." he warned before turning his attention back to Jaune. "Now, Mr. Arc, while I will not condone such behavior towards a fellow student, I will allow it this once due to the many contributions you've made to this class. But remember, this is your one and only warning." said Dr. Oobleck, Jaune returning his words with an affirmative nod as the doctor went on to continue his lectured.

After an hour and 30 minutes, the school's bell rang out, signalling the end of the school's day as several students quickly made their way towards the exit. Jaune raised from his seat, his school bag in hand when the voice of Dr. Oobleck called out to him. "Mr. Arc, stay a moment, please. I would like to have a word with you and Mr. Winchester." said Dr. Oobleck, the tone in his voice made it crystal clear to Jaune that this was not up for debate. So, with a nod towards his classmates, Jaune returned to where the doctor and Cardin stood.

Dr. Oobleck, after taking a final sip of his black java before setting his mug down on the desk. "You two have been at odds with one another ever since the first day of class! Now, I don't know if it's because you have bad history or just your stubborn nature, but whatever it is...It stops now! You've both worked hard to gain entrance to this school, and we only accept the best of the best. Mr. Arc, your various research papers and subsequent defeat of Mistral's Champion, Mr. Satin, are definite achievements that helped your progress and while they are are praise worthy, they do not make you exempt from the same requirements others must have. And Mr. Winchester, you've only continued make racist and ignorant remarks in my class and while I can't force you stop saying these out in public, while you are within school ground you WILL abide by it's rules. History is important, gentlemen! If you cannot learn from it...Then you're destined to repeat it. Pages fifty-one to ninety-one! I want an essay on my desk by tomorrow's class. Now, run along." said Dr. Oobleck, moving as a blur as he quickly exited the classroom, leaving Cardin and Jaune alone.

With a final glare from Cardin, the cardinal bird flew out the door, his Aura flaring with anger and leaving Jaune alone to exit the classroom. As he exited the class, he soon came face to face with his teammate, Pyrrha, who looked to have been waiting for him.

"You know, you didn't have to wait for me, right?" he asked, smiling so she knew he was playing with her.

A gentle smile grew on her lips as she looked into his blue eyes. "I know, but I wanted to make sure Cardin didn't try anything." said Pyrrha, averting her eyes as he smiled at her caring nature.

"Pyrrha, even if Cardin had tried something would it really be any problem?" he asked, as the two of them began making their way towards their dorm.

"No, I suppose not but still you can never be too careless, especially with an opponent. I believe a certain blonde boy once said those words to me when I was a little girl." said Pyrrha, smiling at her childhood friend.

"Really? I seem to recall being thrown through a bathhouse's wall." said Jaune as Pyrrha's cheeks reddened from the embarrassing memory of their first encounter.

"I kept telling mother to stop throwing people through the walls." said Pyrrha, groaning as she face palmed herself.

"Speaking of your mother, how is she?" asked Jaune, wanting to know how his former teacher was after he and his father left Mistral.

"Mother has been doing fine. Better in fact. Before we had met you and Mr. Arc, mother was very closed-minded over not allowing visitors. But I guess after having you as her second student, she began to realize the joys she could have and now there are several other practitioners attending the Temple and being trained by mother." said Pyrrha, her words causing Jaune to smile as he thought of his teacher.

Even if she was a complete and utter psychopathic amazon, who used dirty tactics and out of the way strategy, Jaune respected the absolute hell out of her due to her skills and teaching. In fact, most of her teaching methods actually reminded him of his first time teaching Zabine, Diego, and Eleanor. He smiled as he remembered forcing them to traverse an entire mountain range naked with several boulders strapped their backs or the time he made them wear embarrassing outfits for the humiliation, even if it had caused Diego to desire to transition from a man to a woman, he was still proud of him and his accomplishments. His favorite moment with his pupils was they day he first met them. They were so green back then and still thought of themselves as invincible killing-machines, which was why he found so much enjoyment out beating their asses into the ground.

The sound of Pyrrha's laughing drew Jaune out of his road down memory lane and back into reality as the two of them came across a strange sight. Just beyond their space, currently being hold in place by a group of men in their school uniforms was Cardin and his lackeys and the one currently being surrounded by the arrogant boys was none other than Velvet. Cardin's team must've cornered her before she could make it back to her dorm and Jaune watched as again, several students merely watched the incident play out.

What the absolute hell was wrong with this kids?

How could they all just stand back and watch this happen to someone?

Did it matter that Velvet was a Faunus?

No.

So, while the other students continued to watch the event roll on, Jaune had had just about enough of Cardin's bullshit as he slowly marched his way towards the group, clenching his teeth and his raised his fist. The look of surprise on Cardin's face just before Jaune's fist connected with the boy's jawline was just enough to give Jaune a small segment of satisfaction. But it didn't end there as the rest of Cardin's team, having witnessed the altercation, was slow to react as they each attempted to retaliate against the ex-mercenary.

The boy, named Dove, attempted to throw himself onto Jaune only for him to fly overhead as Jaune swiftly ducked under, before performing a sweeping leg kick on Sky's left foot, leaving the the boy sprawling on the floor. Then the final lackey, named Russel tried to charge at Jaune head on but misses completely as Jaune steps to side, letting the charging Russel charge into his own teammates and knocking them back to the ground and leaving Cardin undefended as Jaune grabbed him by the collar and hoisted him up, slamming his back against the wall.

"What the hell is your problem, Winchester?" Jaune demanded, gripping his collar with intense strength as Cardin's legs dangled above the ground.

"That ANIMAL is my problem." Cardin said, through chocked air, his words adding fuel to Jaune's anger.

"The only animal here is you and your team of shits-for-brains. All I see is an innocent girl, whose had to deal with assholes like you all her life." said Jaune, before gesturing to the various students that continued watching as sweat secreted from his forehead. "And while these idiots seem okay with watching a couple of bigoted assholes bully an innocent girl, I won't stand for it. So, here's how it's going to go down...You and you team of morons are going to apologize to Velvet and thank her for not kicking your asses into early retirement." said Jaune.

At the words "early retirement" Cardin released a chocked up laugh, angering Jaune even further as Cardin's eyes glared into Jaune's furious blue eyes.

"This bunny couldn't hurt a damn stick. Just look at her, so weak. It didn't even take us that long to antagonize her." bragged Cardin, unaware of the growing fury that was building within Jaune.

"If you thought she was weak just because you four idiots were able to surround her, then you've got to be the biggest bunch of idiots I've ever seen. Do you honestly believe a second year would be weak to a couple of first-years, especially with her amount of experience both on and off the battlefield? She's not weak, she's just sorry that the only way you can validate yourself is by waving your bravado around like a massive dick, when we all know that mace is just over-compensating for your tiny self-confidence." said Jaune before tossing Cardin onto the pile of defeated teammates. His furious blue eyes becoming dull and saddened at Cardin's own glaring eyes. "You're an asshole Cardin, you and your team. But you have what it takes to be great Huntsman, maybe even the best. And I know that while others see you as a racist, bigoted asshole, I know that deep down you have what it takes to be a symbol of hope not just for humanity but for Faunus as well...But so long as you continue down this rebellious path of your's there's only one place you'll end up...Don't disgrace yourself by being something you're not." said Jaune, closing his eyes and leaving his words hanging in the air as both he and Pyrrha made their way back towards their dorm.

The walk back was silent as Jaune thought back to his moment with Cardin. It was true that while he hated Cardin's arrogant and racist tendencies, he still felt that Cardin was wasting his precious life on idiot things such as discriminating against the Faunus or just being a complete and general asshole. But there was something about his recent aggressive behavior that had Jaune in deep thought. Even if Cardin WAS an arrogant asshole that didn't explain WHY he was or why he was constantly trying to antagonize Jaune with his increasing attitude problem. But it was the feeling Jaune had gotten from Cardin that caused Jaune some internal strife. It was subtle but jaune could still feel the smidgen of negative energy that seemed to lay beneath his Aura. It was so strange and yet so familiar at the same time that it was all Jaune could think about. While the rest of his team argued over who had won in their fighting game, Jaune's eyes watched the sunset beneath Vale's horizon as the broken lunar sphere rose into the night sky, his eyes slowly closing as memories of a certain girl filled his dreams...One with the same negative feeling that Cardin, himself, had had. Whatever was happening with Cardin, Jaune was sure that it wasn't the first time he experienced this feeling.

The only question was...What was happening to Cardin?

That question would soon be answered the very next week, as Jaune and his classmates boarded one of the two Bullheads that would transport the class to the amazingly, beautiful Forever Fall Forest. A marvelous piece of nature home to a variety of flora and fauna. It's name, "Forever Fall", is due to the numerous birch-like trees with colored leaves that would normally be associated with the season of Fall. It is within these trees that lies a savory sap-like substance that when used properly can be used in a multitude of ways; from medicine to wax to simple syrup used on pancakes...A fact that Nora was all too excited to try and something that caused Jaune strife. Odds were Nora would drain their jars of sap long before class ever started. Currently, the class was on their way to the forest in order to obtain the sweetly sap for their class, led by, the still-absent, Professor Penelope Peach. Though due the professor's absence the class was instead being led by the Vice-Headmistress Glynda Goodwitch, who was keen on keeping a close eye on Jaune's action.

It was understandable, he was an outsider from their perspective despite his being reborn in this world and as such it made sense that they would want to keep an eye on his activities. He certainly didn't like it but it did make sense to him. But while the professor was attempting to calm the other more rowdy students, AKA Yang, Nora, and Ruby, Jaune was keeping his focus on Cardin Winchester and his lackeys. It had been nearly a week since their last altercation and Cardin and his team had been strangely mellow for the past few days. Either not saying a word or just staring off into space and while many found this to be a miracle, Jaune found it off-putting. Had something happened after their last fight? Did his words reach Cardin or were they simply playing the field?

As the two bullheads landed on the forest floor and the students all scrambled out, Jaune took once last glance at Cardin and his team before his attention was brought to Glynda, who held her clipboard and riding crop in hand.

"Yes, students, forest of Forever Fall is indeed beautiful. But we are not here to sight-see, Professor Peach has asked all of you to collect samples from the trees deep inside this forest, and I'm here to make sure none of you die while doing so." said Glynda as the group began to split off, each with their counted number of empty jars to contain the trees' sap. "Each of you is to gather one jar's worth of red sap. However, this forest is full of the creatures of Grimm, so be sure to stay by your teammates. We will rendezvous back here at 4 o' clock. Good luck." said the professor and Jaune, taking a final glance at Cardin and his team watched them sunder off from the group as a strange feeling remained in the back of Jaune's mid before shaking it away to join his teammates.

A smile grew on him at the sight of Nora slurping on several red sap jars and the look of exasperation on Ren's face at the sight of Nora's own smiling expression. Meanwhile, off to the side was Weiss and Blake completing their assignment at record speed and by record speed, he meant snail's pace. It appeared that while they were both keen on completing the assignment, the two of them were currently speaking to one another about recent political changes. Elsewhere, his own team was busy with their sap collecting as Pyrrha plunged another siphon into the tree's trunk while Yang held the empty jar beneath the nozzle, ready to collect the flowing sap. And then there was his partner, his favorite red-hooded reaper, Ruby. Ruby was currently trying to check on her cloak for any droplets of red sap.

"Oohh, I hate this stuff. It tastes awesome but it's such a pain to get out of clothes." she complain, causing Jaune to chuckle at her expense, making her purse her lips and puff her cheek in adorable annoyance. It retaliation, Jaune smiled and placed his hand on her head, gently ruffling her head of hair as a crow's caw grabbed his attention before flying away.

 _"Qrow...Ozpin must still be having him keep an eye on me."_ he thought to himself before returning to the assignment alongside his partner.

"Hey Jaune, what are you going to do after the 1st semester is over?" asked Ruby, plunging another siphon into the tree while Jaune held the empty jar beneath it.

"Honestly, probably stay here. My sisters are all busy with their own lives and mom and dad are off on another one of their monthly honeymoons." said Jaune, hating himself for lying to his partner. In actuality his plan was to gather information and associates within Vale's criminal underworld in hopes of finding more information on Sayuri's whereabouts.

"Well, Yang and I were thinking of heading back to Patch for the break. If you want to come with, I'm sure dad would be glad to make some room." said Ruby, turning her head away to avoid Jaune's stares.

"I don't know Ruby. I didn't exactly leave a praiseworthy goodbye towards your dad when I left, remember?" he asked, remembering all the various death threats he got over the phone from a very pissed off papa bear, Taiyang.

Ruby sighed from at the memory of her dad constantly leaving voicemails on Jaune's scroll after he left them to begin his journey through Remnant.

"Yeah, it's just...It's been so long since you've been to Patch...They tore down the rickety wooden roller-coaster you used to love so much." said Ruby, frowning while Jaune looked back at her deadpanned.

"Ruby, I think you're getting it confused. I was in love with not dying on a termite-infested death trap, it was why I would constantly kiss the ground after getting off." said Jaune, bring the memory of his first ride back to mind.

God that shit was more terrifying than facing against a hundred of his master.

Suddenly, from out of nowhere a lone jar filled with red sap crashed against the tree in front of them. The red sap flying out of the now broken container and landing on their person. An "eep" from Ruby caught the attention of the others as Jaune wiped the sap from his mouth before trying to comfort Ruby. That is until a swarm of Rapier Wasps began buzzing towards them, all homing in on the succulent red sap that was on them. And Jaune, quick to react, released his rilfe, making sure to switch its standard ammo for ice and switching the fire rate to automatic, essentially turning the rifle into a miniature flamethrower but with ice. His finger curled around the trigger as she unleashed a snow flurry on the Rapier Wasps, freezing them and killing them as the others gather around, all ready to protect Ruby and Jaune from any more attacks.

Yang, whose eyes were currently red from rage against whoever attacked her sister, stomped over to Jaune.

"What the hell just happened?" she demanded when Jaune caught a glimpse of Cardin's silhouette in the distance.

"Cardin..." growled Jaune, his growl being met with Yang's own as she pounded her fists together in a show of force.

"I'm going to rip that tiny prick to shreds!" she shouted before being stopped by Jaune.

"Focus on Ruby. Take her to Professor Goodwitch and apply any first aid on her affected areas. We can't risk a rogue Rapier Wasp's sting reaching her nervous system. I'll take care of Cardin and his shit-for-brain lackeys. The rest of you follow them and keep any eye for any Grimm, their most likely attracted to the sap's scent. Understand?" asked Jaune, getting several affirmative nods back before they ran off towards Professor Goodwitch and leaving Jaune alone to face against Cardin.

"You couldn't just leave it alone, could you Cardin?" he said aloud to Cardin before seeing his silhouette back away as he ran towards Cardin's previous location atop the hill behind them only to find it abandoned of both Cardin and his teammates. "Get out here Cardin!" he shouted, readying his weapon for any surprise attack before hearing a voice off to the side.

"So nice you could join me, Jauney-Boy." said Russel in monotone, twirling his daggers in a show of skill as his eyes glowed bright pink as Dove appeared from Jaune's left side, his longsword still in hand.

"I would've rolled out the red carpet but we know how much you hate attention." said Dove, his own eyes glowing pink and smirking as Sky walked out from behind, his halberd poised behind his back.

"But then again, you never were good at keeping yourself hidden, were you?" asked Sky, snarling as his eyes glowed the same color as Cardin waltzed out with his mace in hand and with an obnoxious smirk on his face with bright pink glowing eyes.

"And here I thought I taught you better than that, kiddo." said Cardin, his usual deep voice was now replaced with a cheerful and giggly tone of an adolescent school girl while his Aura flared with a power he had not had before while Jaune's eyes widened in shock.

 _"That's impossible."_ he thought to himself as the four boys circled around him as they spoke at once.

"You've always been this way ever since I first met you on the fateful day." they said at once as Jaune's eyes followed after them. "Always trying to find the "good" in everybody you saw. Well sorry to burst your happy-little bubble but it seems like you're in need of another "special" lesson." they said as they all stopped in place before Cardin stepped forward, mace at the ready. "It's nice to see you again...Morito." said Cardin as Jaune's eyes narrowed in anger.

"Sayuri." he said simply as Cardin smiled and twirling his mace around like it was a want in a Magical Girl anime.

"Ding. Ding. We have a winner!" Sayuri exclaimed as she jumped around like a child in Cardin's body. "How long has it been kiddo? It feels like it's been forever since we last talked." said Sayuri as she winked using Cardin's eyes while Jaune continued to glare at her.

"What the hell have you done master?" he demanded as Sayuri's voice jumped into Russel's body.

"Oh, relax Mr. Stick-In-The-Mud. They're fine, they're just...occupied at the moment." said Sayuri, smiling at her former pupil.

"Cut the bullshit Sayuri! I want answers, now!" he demanded as Sayuri released a sigh out of Russel's body before transferring to Sky's.

"Alright, fine. Geez, can't let a girl have some fun, huh?" she asked, knowing it was only fueling his rage against her. "You see kiddo, I've no doubt that ole "wonderful-wizardly" Ozpin had already told about the whole "avatar" and "maidens" thing, huh?" she asked, not bothering to hear his answer as she jumped into Dove's body. "But there's plenty that old fart hasn't told you and you know it." she said, jumping back into Cardin's body. "Luckily, your senpai is here to show you the truth, that is if you still want it." she said, reaching out to him with Cardin's hand while Jaune continued to glare at it.

"Why are you inside Cardin and his team, Sayuri?" he demanded as Sayuri sighed again.

"Always straight to the point, eh Morito?" she asked, smiling. "Well it turns out that after being "reborn" in this new world I made a discovery about myself. See for every person who's Aura I absorb I gain not just their memories or skills but their Semblances as well. Everything that made them them is now a part of me and the tell-tale sign is that their eyes will glow a certain color." said Sayuri as Jaune's eyes widened in realization. "Another added benefit of my graciously given gift is that I can "jump" into any body so long as I am connected to it...Though this does shorten their lifespan." said Sayuri, smiling venomously at her glaring pupil.

"You didn't...Are you insane?! These boys had their whole lives ahead of them and you stole it from them?!" he shouted, raising his weapon at Cardin before Sayuri switched to Dove.

"You and I both know that's not the case. If these kids were left alone then they would've just became part of the problem. At least this way, they're part of the solution. That solution being empty husks for me to control at my leisure. I tell you it makes doing chores a breeze. You should really try it sometime." said Sayuri, smiling as she jumped into Sky's body. "Now, don't worry...These boys are still alive, they're just empty shells of their former selves. But don't fret because if you do one simple trick for me then I'll release them from my hold and they'll be able to walk free...Of course, they'll be leaving without their Semblances or memories but hey, you've gotta break a few eges to make a cake, right?" sshe asked, smiling as she once again jumped back into Cardin's body.

"What do you want?" asked Jaune, lowering his weapon hesitantly.

"Oh, it's easy...Find me the current Fall Maiden and kill her. Then I'll release them, sound good?" she asked, holding her hand out.

"Even if I wanted to, I have no clue where the Fall Maiden is or where to start." he admitted as Sayuri released a gleeful laugh followed by three simultaneous monotone laughs from Russel, Dove, and Sky.

"Have you tried asking the wonderful wizard that lives in his little emerald kingdom?" she asked, smiling as Jaune grimaced, proving that she hit the nail on the head. "You see, there's plenty of things you do know and plenty you don't. But here's something we both know...Ozpin can't be trusted. He's hiding something kiddo and it's bigger than either of us, than even Remnant." said Sayuri as she flaunted Cardin's muscles. "Take it from someone like me...If it were me who gave those girls their "magic" then I'd do everything I could to take them back...No matter the cost." she said as Jaune trained his rifle on her once more.

"You just want to take the Maiden's powers for yourself! You want those Relics so you can become a god!" he shouted while Sayuri, using Cardin, smile venomously.

"You know me so well, Morito." she said, as Cardin's teammates slowly began to circle Jaune, their weapons at the ready. "But that doesn't change the fact of why I'm actually here."

"Is this your so-called "test", Sayuri?" he asked, keeping an eye on each of them while hoisting his rifle.

"Oh, no...This is more of a...practice round. I want to see just how strong my little boy has gotten." said Sayuri as Russel's daggers caught flame before charging at Jaune, who quickly reacted with a spinning back kick that sent him flying into Sky.

"I can't accept that my own master has become something worse than human shit." said Jaune as he activated his semblance, his white skin darkening as blood-red marking appeared on his body. His blue eyes changing into red while his blonde hair became bleach-white.

For once...Jaune was prepared to go all-out as Sayuri's glowing pink eyes widened in excitement.

"That's what I love about you, you little shit!" she exclaimed as she used Cardin's body to charge forward at her pupil before Jaune's markings moved on their own, forming into a set of bladed tendrils that whip-lashed at the charging Cardin.

But still Cardin held firm, using the Aura provided by Sayuri to protect his body from the tendrils attacks before raising his massive mace for an overhead strike. The attack just narrowly missing him as the tendrils latched onto Cardin's mace as Jaune unleashed a barrage of bullets into Cardin's breastplate. The force sending Cardin flying backward as Russel charged back into the fight with a spinning dash, the added benefit of his fiery daggers causing him to be consumed in flames. But Jaune was quick as he used his tendrils to launch himself into the air before shifting his tendrils into a set of bloody red wings as he unloaded an entire clip of ammunition into the surrounding area. Immediately, Sky appeared using his Semblance as a pair of light blue wings appeared on his heels, gifting him with flight as he flew up to Jaune's level, spinning his halberd as he deflected Jaune's bullets while Dove fired off puck shots from his longsword's chamber. With a spinning slice from Sky's halberd, Jaune was knocked back to the ground where Cardin slammed his mace where Jaune laid, just barely hitting him as he pulled the trigger mechanism on his handle, triggering an explosive reaction from his dust crystal and causing an explosion that sent Jaune flying into a tree trunk, snapping the birch in half as his wings unfurled from having to protect himself from the attack before shifting into a set of arm blades. Jaune then tucked his rifle back into his waistline as he charged at Cardin, making sure to leap over Russel's head as he delivered an onslaught of furious swipes with his arm blades. Russel then retaliated with his own furious swipes as Dove joined in, firing shots from his longsword and from out of the sky came Sky, plunging his halberd into the earth before swinging at Jaune and kicking his chest with his feet and from behind came Cardin, swinging his mace into Jaune's side and sending him flying deeper into the forest. Struggling, he stood up, thankful that his markings had formed into an extra set of body armor to protect him from Cardin's attacks.

 _"Shit...I can't keep this up for long. With Sayuri taking control of their movement and attack patterns it's getting increasingly difficult for me to keep up. Before I didn't need to worry due to their rashness and overconfidence but now it's like they've been training together for years...Add insult to injury is fucking Cardin who's kicking my ass right now!"_ thought Jaune, reloading his rifle as Dove and Russel came bursting through the brush. Russel was in the middle of using his Semblance to charge his kinetic energy before propelling himself towards Jaune like a human torpedo while Dove used his longsword to slice at him, only to be disarmed by Jaune's tendrils that wrapped around Dove's ankles and flung him into Russel before chucking a special grenade at their bodies. He was glad he took those Dust Chemistry classes now as it gave him the idea to create a gravity well grenade or as he liked to call it...A Lockdown Grenade. The grenade used crushed Gravity Dust to create a Dust-generated field that used intense gravity to weigh an opponent down until they were unable to move a muscle. The grenade broke apart as a purple field rose around the two boys, weighing them down from the gravity's increasing weight.

 _"Two down...Two to go."_ he thought to himself before a surprise attack from above caused him to jump away just in time for Sky to come crashing down with his halberd. His glowing pink eyes locking onto him as he used his Semblance to fly at Jaune, swinging his halberd at breakneck speeds while Jaune swiftly somersaulted backwards. As he did so, a pink-eyed Cardin came bursting through the brush with his mace waving wildly before slamming down on Jaune just in time for Sky come grab him by the back of jacket and pull him into the air before nosediving back to the ground at a rapid pace. But Jaune, using one of his other cleverly crafted grenades, activates an Ice-based Dust Grenade that quickly overtakes Sky's legs, preventing him from controlling his flight and causing them to begin tumbling towards the earth. But Jaune, thanks to his markings becoming a set of wings is able to push Sky away as he watches the poor boy crash into the earth, leaving it one-on-one for Jaune and Cardin/Sayuri. Seeing Sayuri was waiting for him in the meadow, Jaune reluctantly flew down, his wings reverting back to red markings on his body while Sayuri stood there in Cardin's body, smiling like an innocent school girl.

"Not bad, kiddo. But still kind of disappointed you didn't just kill those boys. You must be losing your touch, huh?" she asked jokingly as she and Jaune began circling each other.

"There's no way in hell I would kill these boys...Even if they are complete and utter worthless piles of human scum. I still believe they can change for the better and prove not just to others but to themselves that people can change." said Jaune, reloading his rifle as his markings began to move on their own.

"God, whatever happened to the little boy who would rip the limbs off his enemies? I swear the biggest mistake I ever made was teaching you to hold back." said Sayuri, sighing in disappointment. "Sorry to break this little "eden" of your's, kiddo, but nobody changes."

"Perhaps I am an idiot for believing you could change...But I do, master. Even if I have to break your limbs to do so." said Jaune, aiming his rifle at Cardin's breastplate while Sayuri smiled at him, motherly.

Jaune's Aura Level: 32%

Cardin/Sayuri's Aura Level: 32%

The two of them stared at one another in complete silence, the red leaves fluttering about in the background before they both disappeared from view only to clash in the middle of the meadow. A right kick from Jaune was quickly blocked by Cardin's left forearm before he retaliated with a headbutt. Jaune, swiftly, dodged the headbutt, raising his knee to Cardin's gut but the attack was again blocked by Cardin's hand. Luckily, Jaune continued his combo as his marking shifted back into tendrils that latched onto Cardin's arms before flinging him into the air. His markings then shifted into body armor as Cardin, from his new vantage point fired off explosions from his mace, utterly decimating the forest ground as Jaune dodged the oncoming bombardment.

Jaune's Aura Level: 27%

Cardin's Aura Level: 29%

As the armor-bound Cardin landed back on the ground, Jaune appeared from the dust, firing his rifle at Cardin, who held his arm up in defense as the bullets bounced off his Aura, dwindling it down. His markings, now tendrils, lashed out at Cardin, grabbing his legs and flinging him around the forest, slamming his body into tree trunks and the ground. But Cardin, now having Sayuri control his bodily functions is able to slip away when Jaune see's a set of aura-blue wings on Cardin's heels.

"Surprised?" she asked jokingly as she fluttered about in the air, like a little muscular fairy.

"So, you can use other people's Semblance even if you're possessing another person's body?" he asked, firing off his rifle at Cardin as he flew around using Sky's Semblance.

"Overpowered, huh?" she asked as she used Russel's Semblance to propel herself towards Jaune, who leaped back just in time.

But as Cardin stood back up, Jaune's eyes widened as he saw droplets of blood pour from Cardin's eyes as a pained look cross his face.

"J-Jaune...I-It hurts...So much...I-I can't take it..." said Cardin has he tried desperately to fight back against Sayuri's control.

"Cardin?" he asked, surprised as Cardin's hand held his head, dropping his mace to the ground. "Cardin! You have to fight back!" he shouted at him as more blood poured from his eyes.

"I-I can't...Please just end it...End this pain..." Cardin begged as he dropped to his knees, causing Jaune to begin running towards him only for Cardin to hold his hand up, halting his progress. "Stop!...Please, I-I don't how long I can hold her off...Please just stop this pain..." he begged once more.

But Jaune remained adamant. "No! You can fight back against her! I believe in you! Just try Cardin!" Jaune shouted as a soft bright red glow appeared within Cardin's chest.

Cardin was using his Semblance!

Jaune stared open eyed as Cardin's eyes opened revealing pink but red eyes eyes.

"S-She's trying to use my Semblance...Crossfire...If she uses it then..." said Cardin, not finishing his words as Jaune knew what he had meant.

If Cardin used his Semblance then...anyone or anything in his vicinity would be forced to burn to death...Everyone in the forest of Forever fall would perish beneath Cardin's fire. There were only two ways to stop it; either Cardin had to forcibly stop it...Or he had to die...

Cardin looked to Jaune with pleading eyes.

"Please...Save them..." he pleaded one last time as the red flare grew brighter and brighter as Jaune's markings shifted into his arms.

He hated himself now more than ever...

But he knew that this was his only way to save everyone...No matter how much it pained him to do so as he charged at Cardin, tears streaming down his face as he drew closer and closer. And as Jaune's blades pierced through his armor and chest, blood poured through the wound and opening, the red flare vanished and Jaune's arms held Cardin to his chest while Cardin, using what little strength he had held onto Jaune's back.

"W-When I was little...I remembered seeing this little blonde shrimp beat what was once my hero with a single punch...I hated that kid so much...He stole what was once a symbol of hope for a little kid raised in the gutter." said Cardin, coughing up blood that landed on Jaune's trembling shoulder. "S-So I trained and trained until my limbs broke and then when they healed I trained even more. All so I could beat the boy who beat my hero...Imagine my surprise when I find out that same boy would be attending the same academy as me." taking a pause to cough another spurt of blood. "I hated you...You were everything I wanted to be...Cool, brave, and...and kind. You didn't care who needed saving...you just did it...And I hated you for it...So, I tried desperately to win against you...It didn't matter how many times I lost, I wasn't going to give up...I even went as far as making a deal with a devil to do it...And even after all of that...Y-You still tried to save me...You still believed that I could be better than myself...that I could be a hero just like him...Now I realize the truth of why I hated you so much..." said Cardin as he stared into Jaune's crying eyes as tears flowed with the blood. "It's because out of everyone in Remnant...You were what I aspired to be...I'm sorry I couldn't make you proud, Jaune." said Cardin as he smiled softly at his true hero. "Please...take care of the others...They'll be lost without me...And tell Velvet...I'm sorry." said Cardin as his eyes closed and his final breath was drew.

And as Jaune held Cardin's body in his arms, tears streamed down his face in regret.

What if he had been there for Cardin.

What if he had seen what was happening within him.

But that was the sad thing about death...All there would ever be is...

What if's.


	18. Requiem For A Cardinal

**Greetings everyone!**

 **Welcome back to the 18th chapter of everyone's favorite mercenary-turned-huntsman storyline "The Master Huntsman".**

 **So, this chapter will be sort of an in-between chapter of chapters 17 19. The reason it'll be as such is because I didn't want to just skip over Cardin's death just to fit into the show's design so this chapter will be dedicated to Cardin Winchester. So, it may be slightly shorter in comparison to my other chapters.**

 **I know in the show he never really got a good redemption arc to show that Jaune's actions changed him for the better and for all we know he's still as arrogant and bigotted as ever but I've always felt that if Cardin could changed himself for the better that he could become a great man in life and truth be told I've always shipped CardinXVelvet as sort of this "man changes himself and tries to make amends with the woman he bullied only to fall in love with her in the end".**

 **Next Scheduled Release Date:**

 **July 15th: "The Master Huntsman - Ch. 19"**

 **Make sure to Favorite, Follow, and leave a Review!**

 **Till next time!**

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Chapter Eighteen

Death was always a constant for those that chose the life of blood and war. To live with Death's shadow looming over you at every second of every day; from the moment your foot touched ground to the last breathe you took before sleep. Death was always there, waiting to steal you away fro an endless sleep beneath the soil of the earth. Many begged, bribed, stole, and killed to avoid Death's clutches but in the end, no one could avoid their fate.

Not even a little cardinal.

Today was the funeral day for Cardin Winchester, the former leader of Beacon Academy's Team CRDL. He had given his life to protect his team and his classmates from a roaming horde of Grimm. At least, that was the web of lies Ozpin had spun in order to protect Jaune's true identity. Not many believed the lie at first but eventually a few coincidences were able to cause further belief in the lie. For Jaune's friends, he lied and said that Cardin's "prank" was in order to draw them away from the horde and that when Jaune went to find him, he was the only one left standing while his teammates laid unconscious. No one wished to believe such a rare act of kindness had came from a man such as Cardin but after the subsequent "revival" of his teammates the lie was given more weight when they revealed that they had no recollection of the event beyond Cardin trying to save them.

But the event hadn't ended with Team CRDL's loss of a leader. When the three had attempted use of their respected Semblances, they found that they had none. At first they began to question about their ailments but thankfully the intervention of Ozpin prevented any conflict that might've arose. Jaune could still remember standing just outside the infirmary as Ozpin told them another lie. That due to the trauma each of them had endured it was possible that their Aura had locked itself, preventing them from ever using it again. The lie had an immediate effect on the three boys as each of them began to realize that without full control over their Aura and ability to activate their Semblances then they could never be Huntsmen...Ever.

The three boys were given a week to gather their supplies and allowed entrance to Cardin's funeral, which was to be held on school grounds as per his last wish.

And now, here Jaune stood, atop a hill overlooking the funeral as the school's entire class of first-years were attending. And there Cardin laid within a black wooden coffin with a red tarp adorned with his symbol laid atop. He was to be burn to ashes to let the wind carry him off to the afterlife, a form of final rest for those that lost their lives in battle. His weapons and armor would be placed within the school's Hall of Heroes to honor his memory and to remain as a constant reminder of Jaune's inability to save him.

The gathering of first-years all wore black as per usual funeral customs and all wore looks of defeat and solemn that Jaune knew so well from his past life. These were the looks of someone who had never seen death at first hand. They had all thought of themselves as indestructible killing machines but here they stood before the corpse of one of their classmates as reminder to them that no one was capable of escaping Death's bony fingers. Slowly, the crowd began to part ways as Ozpin and Glynda walked towards the coffin to give Cardin his final eulogy.

Jaune watched from afar with a flask of whiskey and a single cigar, his back leaning against the tree behind him as he viewed the funeral of Cardin Winchester.

"We are gathered here today to honor the memory of Cardin Winchester." said Ozpin, speaking with a tone void of solemnness. The eyes of the first-years became hollow as they all watched the still, cold face of Cardin. "Mr. Winchester gave his life to protect his classmates from a horde of Grimm, an action that will surely go down in Beacon history as an act of honor and courage. Though Mr. Winchester was not a kind individual nor was he one of understanding, he was certainly a man who answered the call of duty and performed above and beyond as a true hero." he said, taking a break to release a sigh and collect himself. "Mr. Winchester's sacrifice is a reminder to all of us who strive to become the guardians of the people, a sword to the wicked, and a symbol of peace. Though he is no longer with us, to take on the mantle just as we all have, we must take heed that even men such as Mr. Winchester can rise above their own faults to become what they were truly meant to be." said Ozpin, his brown eyes glancing to Jaune, who stood atop the hill adjacent from them. "May Mr. Winchester find solace in the realm of fallen Huntsmen and Huntresses and may we honor his memory with the final rite of passage." said Ozpin, turning his head to his two fellow faculty members, Professor Port and Professor Oobleck, each holding a torch blazing with fire. A silent nod from their employer and the two professors nodded solemnly before lighting Cardin's coffin ablaze. Wisps of embers floating into the sky as Cardin's body was burnt to ashes, his soul carried off by the gusts of wind as the students shed tears for their fallen comrade.

And so ended the flight of the cardinal of Beacon Academy, Cardin Winchester, a man who ran after his dream despite his heritage of bigotry and thievery. And though he wasn't the ideal symbol of what a huntsman should be, let no one say that he hadn't become this symbol during his final moments as he fought against the evil that dwelled within him. He had become a martyr in his final moments and now he was forever in the realm of heroes.

And as for Jaune, he continued to watched from atop his solitary hill top, the flask of whiskey pressed against his lips, allowing the hard liqueur to flow past his lips before pulling it away to swallow his swill. Then, in honor of Cardin, he spilled the remaining liquid onto the soil of the earth. The action sending Jaune on a memory lane when his own comrades perish in combat and he was unable to protect them. He could still remember the cold, lifeless eyes they each had had. He watched as their bodies were buried beneath the hot sands of the desert, never to be honored in the same way as Cardin. To the rest of the world, those men had never existed but to Jaune, they were the family he had never had...the family he thought Sayuri was to him. But no, instead she had caused their deaths and all for her stupid ideals and now Cardin was just another "expendable" in his former master's eyes.

His fists curled in furious anger as his head tilted to stare into the dark grey clouds that soared the sky. He would avenge Cardin's sacrifice and put an end to Sayuri's plan before another person close to him was taken away. He was done being cautious and he was through waiting for her to show up. While Ozpin was fine with waiting, Jaune was not one to just sit around because in the life of a mercenary...Inaction got you killed. So, as Jaune's head swiveled to gaze over the skyline of the kingdom of Vale, he swore with all his heart that he would find Sayuri and put an end to her life.

Even if it costed him his own.

...Four Hours Later...

Evening consumed the city of Vale, the hustle and bustle of the pedestrians was no long apparent as the bright neon glow of the downtown district illuminated the black darkness while the booming sound of music filled the ears of those that walked the night's streets. Jaune watched from afar as several people shuffled into a singular building, it's bright neon sign above reading, "Junior's".

Jaune sighed as he was reminded of his late night missions back in his old life. From the loud and obnoxious sounds of the terrible music to the annoying party goers, it was just too much for Jaune in his heyday. But now, here he was about to stroll into another damn club for yet another damn mission.

Find and interrogate Hei "Junior" Xiong.

From his investigations, he had learned that Hei "Junior" Xiong was an information broker for both criminals and police alike, which often kept him out of the reach of the law and other unwanted individuals. And with eyes and ears everywhere in Vale, there was nothing going on that Hei didn't know about. And now, it was Jaune's turn to learn what was happening in Vale, one way or another.

Pushing himself off the concrete wall, Jaune made his ways towards the entrance of the club, flashing a forged identification card he had prepared during his journey through Remnant, before entering the building and being blinded by flashing lights and deafened by blaring music. His HUD already scanning the various neon painted faces of the party goers and henchmen that filled the club floor. Thanks to the scanner in his HUD as well having a connection to the Criminal Investigation Bureau, it often made searching for criminals and other wanted individuals a breeze, provided their profiles were still within the C.I.B's database.

Immediately, his scanner met the chiseled, bearded face of Hei "Junior" Xiong standing just behind the bar and serving drinks to various party goers, and a holographic screen appeared before him with information pertaining to Hei "Junior" Xiong.

 _"HUD Display On... Name: Xiong, Hei, Jr... Date Of Birth: August 23rd... Age: 37... Occupation: Business Owner... Criminal Record: Forgery, Bribery, Grand Theft Auto, etc... Address: 137 Azure Blvd..."_ Jaune read out in his head, his eyes reading the list of criminal activity that Hei was arrested for. _All of those broken laws and yet still you remain out of the grasp of those with authority. Must have some friends in some high places, don't you Junior?"_

And as the bright neon lights closed, enshrouding the club in darkness, Jaune made his way into the shadows, disappearing from view as the club closed it's doors and the process of cleaning began.

...Junior...

Junior slowly made his way back towards his office, exhausted from the rowdy drunken customers he had to serve. Stretching his arms allowed the telltale "pops" of his bones to be released, relieving him of his pain as he opened his office door only to meet a masked shadowed figure standing in front of him with a gun's silenced barrel meeting his gaze. His mouth opened to speak but the slight movement on the gun's trigger silenced any attempts Junior might've made and remained silent.

With a swift but firm shake of his wrist, the masked assailant got his message across as Junior closed the door behind him, darkness consuming the light that came through the door. Junior's eyes struggled to make out the assailant's face but due to the darkness as well as his outward appearance, any attempt to make out his description was quickly snuffed out.

Even his voice was masked by a voice modulator, keeping Junior in the dark over the assailant's identity.

"Rough night, eh Junior?" asked the masked assailant, keeping his gun trained on Junior's head. And Junior, not wanting this to be his last night alive wanted to do everything in his power to make sure he remained on the stranger's good side.

"I guess you could say that..." said Junior, keeping his gaze on the gun in front of him.

"Meet any interesting people tonight?" asked the masked assailant.

"Not particularly." he said simply when suddenly a holographic projection of all of the crimes he had ever committed appeared before him. From the time he robbed a convenience store at the age of 13 to the grand theft auto he pulled at the age of 20 to more recently with Roman and his own men robbing a Dust shop. "W...What do you want? If it's information you want then I'll gladly give it to you." he fearfully asked, trying to hide his anxiety behind a facade of a bravado. And as soon as the words left his mouth, a wave of goosebumps crawled over his body as a dark and horrifying chuckle left the masked assailant's mouth.

"I know you will, Junior." said the masked assailant, no doubt smiling behind his mask as his eyes gleamed in the darkness. "I know you will."


	19. Two Paths, One Goal

**Greetings everyone!**

 **Welcome to the long awaited 19th chapter of "The Master Huntsman."**

 **And boy has it been a grueling few weeks for your's truly. A brand new schedule change has me utterly swamped with a workload of paperwork to go through and working on multiple chapters at once is proving to be pretty exhausting. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy writing and I love seeing just how many people enjoy reading my stories. It's just getting to be pretty tiring on top of everything else.**

 **Side Note: I actually ended writing two different versions of this chapter simply because I couldn't pick one that I preferred the most. Seeing as I picked this one instead of the other one, I've decided to add on the other version of the chapter at the end of this one as a sort of "What-If/Parallel-World" thing. Meaning the other version is NOT part of the story's canon and is in itself a standalone thing.**

 **Next Scheduled Release Date:**

 **August 12th: "The Master Huntsman - Ch. 20"**

 **Make sure to Favorite, Follow, and leave a Review!**

 **Till next time!**

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Chapter Nineteen

It was late at night when the sound of breaking glass echoed throughout the desolate downtown area of Vale. The streets, littered by rubbish, illuminated by the soft glow of the streetlamps that lined the sidewalks. Above the black clouds that soared across the velvety night sky as the luminescent glow of Remnant's broken moon rained down upon the black clouds, gifting them with a halo of silver linings. But twas below where the the broken glass laid upon the dirty sidewalk as several masked men and women, all wearing the masks of creatures whom walked through darkness. This was just one of many robberies currently taking place throughout the city of Vale. Throughout the past several weeks, many small owned Dust shops were reported to have been broken into where the thieves would lift the elemental enriched minerals while leaving the lien. This confused the Vale Police Department as they could not figure out as to why anyone would rob a small business while blatantly ignoring the sweet allure of valuable Lien.

And tonight was no different as the masked men and women carted several briefcases of valuable Dust, some crystallized while others came in the form of powder in order to fit with the customer's fighting style or everyday activities, into a nearby van that remained parked outside of the store. Behind the wheel of said van was another masked man with two antlers sticking out of the black hood on his head. Sticking his head out of the driver's side window, the man gestured for the group of masked thieves to hurry it up.

"Would you hurry your asses up?" he whispered at to them while darting his eyes to the nearby tops of buildings. "I don't want to be out here any longer than I have to be."

"Aww, what's the matter, Sika? Scared the big bad Phantom will get ya?" asked one of the masked men, making ghost sounds through his mask as Sika glared at him from behind his own mask.

"Shut up, Kodi." said Sika, still looking around out of anxiety. "You've heard the rumors too. About that masked guy who's been stopping all of our recent excursions? What if he shows up here? You know how pissed off Roman will get if we come back with no Dust? Or worse if we get caught?" asks Sika, watching as Kodiak groans out of annoyance as he places a crate of Dust in the back of the van.

"First off, we're not even sure if this guy is even real. For all we know he's just a made up rumor the pigs in Vale's Police Department made up to scare us off." said Kodiak, turning to see a man glaring at him from behind his mask, his pig-like ears showcasing from the sides of his black hood, causing Kodiak to laugh nervously while scratching the back of his head. "Heh, no offense." Kodiak apologized before the man snarled and went about his business, leaving Sika to snicker at Kodiak's embarrassment. Though this only proved to fuel Kodiak's anger towards the snickering Sika but before he could clobber the snickering Sika, a woman wearing the same grimm mask walks out, placing a hand on Kodiak's chest as she turned her head to glare at the two morons.

"Both of you shut up and finish your jobs. Or else, I'll be the one explaining why there will be two less mouths to feed. Understand?" she demanded, causing the two to hold their tongue and look away from each other.

"Yes, ma'am." said Sika, frowning from behind his mask while Kodiak glared at him.

"Kiss ass." he muttered when the woman unveiled her gloved hand revealing gray hands and veins. Seeing this made Kodiak correct himself out of fear of the woman. "Er, I mean...Yes, Katipo, ma'am."

Satisfied that the she had tormented the two enough already, Katipo covered her hands and walked back into the store, leaving the two Faunus to continue speaking to one another. And Kodiak, wanting to continue their conversation, walked over the Sika's window, leaning against the side of the van.

"Second, who cares what that Human says? We're only working with him because of Adam and that Cinder-woman's deal. As far as I'm concerned we'd be just fine without them." said Kodiak, leaning against the side of the van as he and Sika wait for their colleagues to return with more crates.

However, after several minutes go by with no one returning from inside of the store, Kodiak and Sika share a look before Kodiak pulls out a stolen rifle from behind Sika's seat, pressing the stock against his shoulder blade and raising the iron-sights to meet his right eye as he slowly made his way towards the opening of the store, leaving Sika alone in the van as a dark shadow breezes past, startling the young deer Faunus. Scrambling to grab another rifle from the passenger side seat, Sika turned to face the red eyes of a white haired demon with bloody red wings.

Sika opened his mouth to scream only for the demon to cover his mouth with his hand, which Sika tried desperately to uncover but the strength of the demon proved to be too much for the poor Faunus to handle as with the white haired demon's bloody wings spread outward, blocking the glow of the broken moon, both the demon and Sika vanished. Leaving only Kodiak as he stumbled out of the store, tripping onto the concrete as she struggled to lift his mask, revealing his brown hair and green eyes as he purged his stomach onto the concrete.

After wiping his mouth of his disgusting residue and throwing his mask off to the side before rushing to the passenger door with a panicked expression on his face. "Sika! We've gotta get the hell out of here!" he shouted, not even bothering to care if any Human heard his panicked shouts of terror. But when he gazes across to see that Sika had disappeared from sight, the horror is just too much for the bear Faunus as he quickly jumped into the driver's seat, reaching for the car keys to turn the vehicle on when from out of nowhere, Sika's body drops from the sky, landing on the roof, denting it and scaring Kodiack so much that he slams on the gas pedal, rocketing off into the night while the silhouette of the white-haired demon lands on the building above, watching with hidden glee as the terrified Faunus races off back to his hole.

Reaching into his pocket, the figure pulled out a sleek silver scroll, turning it on and inputting a series of passcodes until the screen blooms to life, revealing a voice message from Hei "Junior" Xiong. Hitting the accept button, the figure listened as static runs through before the distinct voice of Junior comes through the speakers.

"Boss, we've just gotten word that Roman is planning a big heist a few weeks from now." said Junior, sounding slightly nervous to be leaving a message to the man who had been threatening to kill him just a few weeks to go. "We're not sure what it is he's planning though. Word is he's keeping this on a need to know basis but he was asking about any recent shift changes down by the docks. Might be something to look into, I'll call back when I've gotten anything new." said Junior, ending the voice message without a goodbye as the masked figure gazed out from atop the building, his blood red wings spreading outward as he took off into the night sky and flew towards his next destination...Beacon Academy.

This was Jaune Arc or, as many of the Black Hound members have been referring to him as, the White Phantom. For weeks, Jaune has been using this given moniker during his late night excursions into the city of Vale, investigating the comings and goings of Roman and the Black Hound's activities. Something was going on in the city of Vale and Jaune was determined to find out what.

But first he needed to sneak back into the academy of superpowered, weapon-wielding, hormonal teenagers. This proved to be easier than many would think as thanks to Ozpin's turning him into the glorifed next heir to take his place as headmaster of Beacon Academy, Jaune has a bit more leniency with the security system, being granted their codes and ways to sneak past the faculty without detection. Oh, don't get him wrong, he was still plenty pissed at the man for all of the shit he's put Jaune through but their deal proved to be more than worth it's salt.

As Jaune landed on the perimeter of the academy, making sure to temporarily disable the security as he sneaked his way back into his dorm room, slowly lifting the window and slipping back into bed after changing out of his vigilante uniform and back into his pajamas. The sweet allure of sleep overtaking him as he slowly fell asleep alongside his three female teammates.

Unfortunately, he'd come to regret this decision just as he always did as the second he woke up, he found himself with Pyrrha laying on his chest alongside Yang and little Ruby was laying next to his right leg, holding it as she dreamily nibbled on it, mumbling something about cookies. Meanwhile, Jaune could only release a sigh as he carefully got out from beneath the gaggle of girls and headed towards the showers with his bathroom supplies. Along the way, Jaune met his brother-in-arms, Lie Ren, who held his own bathroom supplies and pink towel under his arm.

"Morning Ren." said Jaune, smiling at the same bags underneath Ren's eyes as he had under his own. "Rough night?" he asked, though already knowing the answer as Ren released a loud yawn from his mouth, slowly blinking his eyelids as he and Jaune made their way towards the showers.

"Nora kept waking me up to talk about her recurring dream." said Ren, yawning as a dark memory entered his mind of Nora waking him up every 5 minutes. "Finally it got too much for both Blake and Weiss, who woke up to yell at Nora for constantly waking them up and Nora yelling back that if Weiss hadn't taken her favorite bedtime syrup this wouldn't have happened." said Ren, frowning and turning his head to look at Jaune with tired eyes. "So, yeah, "rough night" is a word I'd use to describe my evening." Ren finished as the two men entered their own individual showers and began lathering themselves up with soap and water.

Silence came between the two men as they enjoyed the feeling of hot water raining down upon their slim yet muscularly-toned bodies. Afterward the two boys quickly dried themselves off with their towels, before putting on their uniform and walking out of their respected stalls towards the sinks to begin their morning hygiene routine.

"What about you, Jaune?" asked Ren, turning to look at his friend with a ghost smile. "Are you having "rough nights" as well?" he asked again, watching with a trolling glint in his eye as Jaune just gave him an annoyed deadpanned glare.

"Shut up, Ren." said Jaune, glaring at Ren, who began laughing at his friend's dilemma and before you know it, both guys were sharing a laugh, finally at ease with one another.

After rinsing their mouths out with mouth wash, the two packed their bathroom supplies and headed back to the doors to wake their teammates from their slumber. Afterwards, the two teams, after the females finished their own showers and morning routines, headed towards the academy's cafeteria where they obtained their trays of breakfast items and took their seats at their usual corner table. The most notable collection of food was sitting atop Ruby's tray, that being 3 stacks of strawberry pancakes and six different types of cookies, which she scarfed down like her life depended on it.

"Ruby, you really should be eating a more balanced breakfast. One that suits your fighting style besides strawberries and cookies." said Jaune, trying to advise the little huntress, who gasped with a mouth full of food before swallowing it and finishing her gasp.

"That's blasphemy, Jaune! Everyone knows that cookies are a valuable treasure gifted upon the world by the caring hands of the all-powerful brothers." said Ruby, raising a chocolate chip cookie into the air as she stared at it with sparkling eyes.

That is until Jaune took her tray of sweets, pushing his tray of a proper balanced breakfast in front of her, smiling as he took a bite of her cookie and enjoying the look of defeat on her adorable face. In desperation, Ruby flailed her arms attempting to stake back her sweet delights while Jaune held her at bay with a single hand, happily munching on her cookies while the others laughed at her expense.

This had been Jaune's daily routine for the past several weeks. Juggling school, relationships, and vigilante work each day with varying degree of trouble. Could you imagine being reincarnated, told you're the avatar for an alternate world's god, forming relationships with several people...Sounded like something out of a badly developed story written by a fan. Nevertheless, this was his routine and that was not going to change...Or so he thought.

...Several Weeks Later...

It was Friday and Roman's planned heist down by the docks would be taking place this tomorrow evening, as evident by Junior's network of information gathering. But after weeks of lacking sleep, Jaune's overall attitude was...To put it nicely...Not going very well. He had started to become much more irritable and less talkative with his teammates and friends. And all the while he'd constantly belittle himself for becoming this way as he'd have little trouble doing the same routine back in his old life. Granted he was much older with a more developed psyche but still.

So, when Team RNBW's leader, Weiss, demanded that they all journey down towards the docks in order to introduce themselves to the students visiting for the upcoming Vytal Festival, every part of Jaune wanted nothing more than find Roman and blast him full of red hot lead, after getting as much information out of him as he could. Nonetheless, Jaune kept his emotions to himself as they all boarded the transport ship to Vale's station platform. After unboarding the group all sat back as Weiss stepped forward with a look of wonder at the number of decorations that littered the streets of Vale, tourists visiting from the other three kingdoms walking about buying souvenirs and learning about each other's cultures.

"The Vytal Festival! Oh, this absolutely wonderful!" Weiss exclaimed, freaking Ruby out with Weiss's unnatural smile as she took a small step back away from the ice queen.

"I don't think I've seen you smile this much, Weiss." said Ruby, frowning a small bit. "It's kinda freaking me out..." she finished, stepping behind Jaune and clinging to his longcoat as he simply smiled and patted her head in a loving brotherly fashion, causing her to blush slightly and the other girls, minus Nora, to watch with hidden jealousy.

Seeing Ruby's uneasiness with the unnaturally happy Weiss, Blake felt the need to lean closer to Jaune and the others as Weiss continued to be amazed at the scenery. The raven-haired feline Faunus smiling at her friends as she leaned closer. "If you think this is weird, you should see Weiss when her older sister visits." said Blake as Ruby and the others turned to look at Blake in confusion.

"Weiss has an older sister?" asks Yang, not knowing that Weiss had siblings as they were not all that prevalent at learning about Weiss's past due to focusing on killing Grimm and their studies.

"That's right, her name's Winter. She's a specialist in the Atlas Military and she can be a bit...stern when it comes to Weiss. But she also has a little brother, named Whitley. It's kind of funny and cute but he has a bit of a crush on me. But don't tell Weiss, she'd never let me hear the end of it and if Winter heard about it too...Ugh." whispered Blake, turning back to see Weiss still looking amazed.

"Oh, isn't this amazing?" Weiss suddenly asked aloud, drawing the group's attention back to the snow-haired heiress. "A festival dedicated to the cultures of the world! There will be dances! Parades! A tournament!" she continued to announce, unaware to the strange stares her friends were giving her. "Oh, the mount of planning and organization that goes into this event is simply BREATHTAKING!" she exclaimed, turning back to smile at her friends, who had all decided it was best to hide behind the deadpanned-looking Jaune.

"You really know how to make a good thing sound boring." said Yang, smirking as Weiss glared at the hotheaded blonde, hiding behind Jaune's back.

"Be quiet, you!" shouted Weiss, pouting as Jaune and the others began laughing at Weiss's own expense.

Afterwards, the group began making their trek towards the docks, walking along the decorated street as civilians walked past, marveling at the sights of the kingdom of Vale. Along the way, Ruby tried multiple times to escape, as Weiss began lecturing them on the amount of organization and manpower needed to host the Vytal Festival, only for Jaune to constantly stop her progress to the point where the little red-hooded reaper was being forcibly carried underneath Jaune's arm. Yang laughed at the sight while Ruby settle for a pout as they continued towards the docks.

As they approached the docks, Yang felt the desire to speak up, questioning their need to be their to greet the arriving students. "Remind me again as to WHY we're spending our Friday afternoon visiting the stupid docks?" asked Yang as Ruby groaned in disgust, pinching her nose in order to keep the strench of fish out of her nose.

"Ugh, they smell like fish!" squealed Ruby, while Blake's mouth was agape, imagining the plethora of fish that munch on.

"They do..." she said absentmindedly while Jaune and Weiss just rolled their eyes at Blake's obvious cat-like behavior, seeing as they were both well used to her Faunus qualities.

Seeing an opportunity to showcase her tried and true qualities as a student of Beacon Academy, Weiss turned to address Yang, who watched as a ship was preparing it's docking progress. "I've heard that students visiting from Vacuo will be arriving by ship today. And, as a representative of Beacon, I feel as though it is my solemn duty to welcome them to this fine kingdom!" she announced, turning back to gaze underneath the soft glow of the sun while Blake smirked and leaned closer to Jaune and Ruby to correct Weiss's claim.

"She wants to spy on them so she'll have the upper hand in the tournament." said Blake, smirking as Weiss turned to at her best friend's obvious accusation with an overly dramatic scoff.

"You can't prove that!" she scoffed as the others laughed at the heiress and Jaune slowly nodded in agreement.

"She's not wrong, though." he said, causing everyone to look at the ex-mercenary. "We ARE going to be facing these guys in the tournament and it's never a bad idea to go into combat with information on your opponents."

"But isn't that cheating?" asked Ruby, frowning like an adorable puppy.

""If you ain't cheatin', then you ain't tryin'". An old friend of mine once said that." said Jaune, smiling as memories of his time spent with his first pupil, Salim. Each time they'd spar with one another, Salim would always sneak a victory past his master and each time he'd always make that same excuse.

But before anyone could question Jaune's words, his eyes stray from the others, seeing a shattered window down the street and a door full of yellow caution tape with several officers from the Vale Police Department walking out front. Instinctively, the ex-mercenary rushed off to the crime scene, followed by the others, who all looked on as Jaune walked up to one of the officers, his name tag reading "Officer Cole."

"What happened here?" asked Jaune, looking at the officer's eyes with a serious expression while Officer Cole sighed in annoyance, stopping himself from finishing in his clipboard and turning to address the new people.

"Robbery." he said, turning to look at the shop before turning back. "Second Dust shop to be hit this week, too. Telling ya, this place is turning into a jungle." said Officer Cole when his partner, his name tag reading "Officer Gavin", walked out with a very panicky male Faunus with serpentine-like eyes and scales, trembling as the officer brought him outside and out of his so-called safe haven. "What do we have here?" asked Officer Cole as Officer Gavin attempted to keep the prisoner under control.

"One of those Black Hounds members." said Officer Gavin. "Keeps mumbling about that White Phantom guy." he finished as Officer Cole sighed, shaking his head.

"Not another one." he complained as Officer Gavin took the Black Hounds member to the nearby police cruiser. "And they left all the money again...It just doesn't make any sense. Why would the Black Hounds need THAT much Dust?" Officer Cole asked himself before groaning and rubbing the back of his head out of stress and tucking the clipboard underneath his left arm. "I don't get paid enough for this shit." he complained, joining his partner as they drove off with the prisoner in tow, still screaming about the White Phantom.

Meanwhile, the group decided it was best to walk away from the scene. However, due to seeing a fellow Faunus brethren being carted off by the police was proving to be too much for her as she followed behind the group at a slower pace. Seeing her friend's inner hardship, Weiss slowed her own pace to match Blake's as she looked on in worry.

"Are you alright, Blake?" asked Weiss, knowing the amount of care Blake held for the misguided Faunus tricked by Adam's words of "true" equality when in reality they were nothing but the words of a mad man filled with hatred.

"I should've done something..." said Blake when Weiss placed her hand on Blake's shoulder in order to comfort her friend. "Maybe if I'd gone with him...I could've...I-

But before she could utter another word, Jaune turned to look back at the two with a dark expression on his face. "You wouldn't have been able to do anything." said Jaune, already knowing exactly what Adam was like considering his own checkered past dealing with all sorts of crazy mad men, one of them being his own master, Sayuri. "Adam is a psychopathic mad man. He's just using the hardships of the Faunus to justify his own twisted sense of justice." said Jaune, somehow angering Blake as she felt the need to make excuses for someone she used to have strong feelings for.

"Adam isn't like that." she said, frowning when Jaune turned away from her with a roll of his eyes. "He does care about the hardships of the Faunus...He's just...Misguided." she said as Jaune turned around with an annoyed look on his face.

""Misguided"?" he asked, repeating Blake's last word. "Misguided is when someone gives you directions and you misinterpret that as something else. Misguided is NOT wanting to wipe Humanity off the face of the planet!"shouted Jaune, spooking Blake before her eyebrows creased into an angry expression.

"Then he's VERY misguided. The point is there's still good in Adam, I know there is. And it doesn't explain with the Black Hounds would rob a Dust shop in the middle of downtown Vale!" she shouted back, the two of them fuming at each other's words while the others watched on, unsure of what to do when Ruby decided it was best to voice her opinion.

"Umm...Blake's got a point. Besides the police never did catch that Torchwick guy we fought a few months ago...Maybe is was him?" she suggested, not knowing that she was indeed correct in her assumption as Jaune already knew that Roman and the Black Hounds were working together under the same unidentifiable employer. It was partially one of the reasons Jaune was so insistent on capturing the thief as it might pose some clues o Sayuri's whereabouts, no matter how slim they might be.

But this did little to satiate Jaune's own knowledge of the actual going on's in Vale. And considering he had absolutely no desire to see his friends and allies killed in front of him after so many have already fallen victim to his master's cruelness, thought it was best to keep his knowledge under wraps.

"That doesn't change the facts that the Black Hounds are blindly following the rosy words of a mad man and believe me, they never walk away feeling enlightened." said Jaune, remembering all of the mad men he'd faced in his old life, the prime example being his master, who brainwashed children with her twisted ideology turning children who once held genuine aspirations into mindless drones for her break again and again at her own leisure.

But before either of them could continue their argument a nearby shout from the docks alerted them, causing them to rush over to see what the commotion was all about as a male blonde monkey-tailed Faunus was running across the length of the boat and being chased by two sailors, each carrying clubs. As the edge of the boat came into view, the Faunus leaped over the railing, landing on the docks before turning to wink at the two sailors with a mischievous glint in his smile.

"Thanks for the lift! Haha!" the Faunus laughed, racing down the docks and leaping onto a nearby light pole to stop and eat a delicious banana while the two sailors shook their fists in irritation at him, one of them shouting out that the boy was just some no-good stowaway. But for some odd reason, the so-called "stowaway" took this as an offense as he stood atop the light pole to face the two yelling sailors. "Hey! A no-good stowaway would've been caught! I wasn't, therefore I'm a GREAT stowaway!"

But before the stowaway could eat his snack, one of the officers, coming back to review the crime scene took notice of the commotion and made his way towards the stowaway. Already long tired of having to deal with amount of paperwork this incident would entail for him.

"Hey!" shouted Officer Cole, frowning when the stowaway turned to face him. "Get down from there!" he commanded only to get a face-full of the boy's banana peel, fueling his anger when the Faunus leaps off of the light pole, laughing as he ran away from the officer and down the dock towards the still-watching group of students. As he raced past the group, he slowly turned to wink at Blake, noticing her cute feline ears resting atop her head in full viewing before continuing to run off, followed by the still-angry Officer Cole.

Yang, watching the ensuing chase getting farther and farther away from them, turned to glance at Weiss, as she, too, was still watching absentmindedly. "Well, Weiss, you wanted to check out the competition, and there it goes..." she said as Weiss's eye widened, holding up her right index finger into the air.

"Quick! We have to observe him!" she shouted, giving chase after the two who ran down the streets followed closely by the others. However after rounding the same corner the other two had, Weiss mistakenly bumps into someone rounding the same corner, causing her to trip and both of them to fall to the ground. Lifting her head up to catch a glimpse of the Faunus boy, only to see him leap onto a nearby building, disappearing from view and causing Weiss to groan in disappointment. "No, he got away!" she complained as Yang stepped into her view, pointing downward.

"Uh, Weiss?" she says, still pointing downward to the stranger underneath her teammate.

Following Yang's finger, Weiss finally sees that she was laying on top of a smiling girl, startling her as she hastily gets back to her feet, joining alongside the others as they all watched the girl, still smiling on the sidewalk.

"Sal-u-ta-tions!" she exclaimed, smiling at the group.

"Um...Hello?" says Ruby, unsure of what to do in this situation.

"Are you...Okay?" asks Yang, also unsure of what to do alongside her sibling.

But this didn't seem to faze the still-smiling girl as she continued to remain lying upon the sidewalk as the others watch over her. "I'm WONDERFUL! Thank you for asking." said the girl, smiling up at them.

The group all turn to look at one another, confused over the girl's strange behavior and way of speaking. Finally, Pyrrha speaks up to alert the girl to her presence. "Do you...Want to get up?" she asks, causing the girl to ponder Pyrrha's words for a moment before coming to a decision.

"Yes!" she announces, leaping back to her feet and causing everyone but Jaune to back away from the strange girl. "My name is Penny! It's a pleasure to meet you!" she introduces herself with a smile and extending her hand outward. To which Jaune takes in his, the two sharing a firm handshake.

"I'm Jaune. Nice to meet you, Penny." he replied, smiling as Ruby joined alongside him on his right and Pyrrha on his left.

"Hello again, Penny. I'm Pyrrha." she says, smiling.

"I'm Ruby!" shouts Ruby, feeling ecstatic to meet a new person.

"I'm Ren." says Ren when Nora leaped onto his back with a wide smile and a jazzy wave.

"AND I'M NORA!" shouts Nora, nearly bursting Ren's ear drums though he instead chooses to smile, patting Nora's head.

"I'm Weiss and this is my best friend, Blake." says Weiss, gesturing to Blake, who had opted out of introducing herself as she continued to stare in the direction of where the stowaway had ran off to.

"Are you sure you didn't hit you head?" asks Yang, only for Jaune to hit her head with his fist. "Ow! Gah, I hate it when you do that." she complained when Jaune turned back to glare at her, ceasing her complaints as she turned back to face Penny. "I'm Yang."

Penny smiles at the group's introductions, feeling happy to have met several new faces on her first day in Vale. "It's a pleasure to meet you!" she says again, causing some slight confusion among the group as Weiss points out that Penny had already said that prior to their introductions. This causes Penny to pause for moment in thought. "So I did!" she says before remaining silent.

This proved to be the wrong choice as soon Weiss goes to turn around away from the strangely-behaving girl.

"Well, sorry for running into you!" she quickly apologizes as she and the others turn to walk away, heading back to Beacon Academy with Ruby turning back with a friendly smile and a wave.

"Take care, friend!" said Ruby, waving as Penny remained standing still almost in a blank state as the group walked away from her.

After checking to see they had made it out of earshot, Yang turned to the others, cover the side of her mouth with her hand. "She was...weird..." said Yang when suddenly Penny appears in front of them, shocking not only the group but Jaune as well, who's eyes were wider than saucers at her sudden appearance.

 _"What the absolute fucking fuck!?"_ he shouted internally, his instincts nearly causing him to spring into action in order to protect himself from this new threat. _"How the hell did she sneak past me?"_ he asked himself while Penny remained standing with a questioning expression on her face.

"What did you call me?" she asks, staring at the group with a strange expression, spooking Yang, thinking that Penny was referring to her.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't think you'd hear me." she said, cursing herself for saying it out loud when Penny breezed past her and walked towards Ruby. "YOU." she said, startling Ruby as she began looking back and forth when Jaune stepped in between them, ready to do what he must against this new threat. But whether Penny acknowledged Jaune's presence and just didn't care or her focus being on Ruby, left anyone else out sight and out of mind was left to be debated as she continued to watch the startled Ruby. "You called me "friend"!" she suddenly spoke, confusing the young reaper. "Am I really your FRIEND?" she asked, watching as Ruby turned to look at her friends, many of them shaking their heads "NO!" while Jaune remained focus on Penny's expressionless face, before turning to look at Penny.

"Uumm, sure!" she said, smiling nervously. "W-Why not?"

Suddenly, Penny's expression shifted back into a delighted grin as she threw her arms into the air with a joyful laugh. "SENSATIONAL!" she cries out, jumping about and easing at least some of the tension of the others, though Jaune made sure to keep a watchful eye on the strange girl. "Now we can paint our nails, and try on clothes, and talk about cute boys!" she says, sound more and more excited with each suggestion.

Finally, Yang asks the question that needed answering as Penny continued jumping around in joy and Jaune watched her every move with a strange look in his eyes. "So...What are you doing in Vale?" asks Yang, causing Penny to turn in order to address her.

"I'm here to fight in the tournament." said Penny, confusing Weiss, who looked at Penny in disbelief.

"Wait, YOU'RE fighting in the tournament?" asks Weiss, narrowing her eyes on Penny as she raised her right arm into a salute with a smile.

"I'm combat ready!" she announces, smiling even though Weiss continued to stare at her in disbelief.

"Forgive me, but you hardly look the part." she pointed out, noticing Penny's overall strange behavior and borderline futuristic uniform. Though while the snow-haired heiress was quick to point this out, Blake thought it best to point out something obvious to her best friend as well.

"Says the girl wearing a dress." said Blake, smirking as Weiss crosses her arms as both Ruby and Norw speed over to her sides.

"It's a combat skirt!" says Weiss, holding out her hands for both Ruby and Nora to low-five them before realization struck her like a ton of bricks, causing her to walk over to Penny. "Wait, if you're here for the tournament, does that mean you know that Faunus boy?" asks Weiss though Penny only succeeded in looking very confused over Weiss's words.

"The who?" she remotely asked, causing Weiss to release a groan of annoyance, thinking that Penny had been unaware of the Faunus that ran right past her when Blake placed a hand on Weiss's shoulder.

"It'll be okay, Weiss. If he's here to fight in the tournament then odds are we'll see back at Beacon." Blake advised, gifting Weiss with a sense of relief as she took her partner's words to heart, calming down from her frustrations.

"Thank you, Blake." she said, smiling at her best friend since childhood. "You always know just what to say to me." said Weiss, turning to face the others, who all stood quietly off to the side. "Well, seeing as we've already lost the opportunity to spy...Er, I mean...Greet the visiting students, I suggest we all head back to Beacon Academy. All in favor?" she asked, seeing several hands raise into the sky.

But as the group bid their farewells to the strange girl known as Penny, Jaune took one final glance at the girl who defied all logic and somehow managed to sneak past him. There was something strange with that girl but as he turned his head one last time to catch a glimpse of the girl, his eyes widened as she vanished without a trace, once again his own senses were left dull and weakened from his new body and it only showed that Jaune was far from his original strength and skill.

But if Jaune thought his argument with Blake was over, then he was in for a really aggravating evening. As Jaune wandered the desolate halls of Beacon Academy, his mind preoccupied with plans for Roman's heist and information on the entity known as Penny, he began to hear the sound of whispers coming from Team RNBW's dorm and upon checking his own dorm for any signs of his teammates, his eyes narrowed in irritation. And before anyone could stop him, Jaune threw open Team RNBW's door, revealing everyone in their combat gear rather than their nightly pajamas, their eyes widened in alarm at the sight of an angry Jaune. His rademarked glare instilling them the fear he'd lived so long to acquire as they stood there motionless.

Jaune knew what this was.

They were all planning to investigate the recent robberies in order to see if they were really done by the Black Hounds. Of course, Jaune, himself, knew the truth but he also knew that if he were to reveal this information to them then it would make Blake all the more convinced that the Black Hounds were being used. And while that was truth to some level, it's not as if they weren't already willing to do anything to accomplish their goals and stealing Dust was just a small step to their goal in subjugating Humanity as a whole.

"What's going on here?" he demanded, releasing his old Drill Sergeant persona for added intimidation, taking immense pleasure as they all seemed to jolt out of their skins at the feeling of his overwhelming bloodlust Aura.

"J-Jaune!" Ruby shouted, her legs shaking beneath his intimidating gaze as her silver eyes shifted from left to right as they attempted to avoid meeting her gaze while the others remained silent. "W-We were...Um...We were...PLANNING YOUR BIRTHDAY PARTY! Yeah, that's it!" she finally shouted at the top of her lungs, every ounce of herself begging for Jaune to believe the very obvious lie.

"Bullshit." he said, completely obliterating every ounce of hope she might've held. "Try. Again." he demanded, letting them all know that should they try and lie again then this was going be a very bad night for them.

Finally, a sigh escaped between the graceful lips of Blake Belladonna, who stood from her spot on her bed and walked over to face the walking one-man-army. Every animalistic instinct within her practically screaming at her to run from this predator, to hide away in hopes that it would never find her, and peacefully pass away from this world away from the horrors this man would put her through. But her pride was too strong for even her own instincts as she faced him with a facade of bravado.

"We're going to investigate the string of robberies and see if it's REALLY the Black Hounds committing them." said Blake, hiding her wince under Jaune's immediate glare. "We felt it was best to leave you out of the loop for...Obvious reasons." she finished when Yang opted to step forward and face the terror that was her best friend.

Yang had felt this fear before when she was younger. She remembered being attacked by a group of bullies who threw a bucket of sludge on her, ruining her hair for weeks. But when she attempted to make the bullies pay for what they had mistakenly done, Jaune immediately appeared with this very same bloodlust and it shocked her to the very core. And now, here she was facing that bloodlust once again, only this time it wasn't meant to protect her as she stood before him.

"Blake asked us to help her cause she knows she can't do this alone, Jaune." she said, placing her hand on Blake's shoulder as the two of them had formed the same closely knit bond as Blake and Weiss, who stood beside her best friend underneath Jaune's ever growing glare. "We know the chances that it's the Black Hounds are high but what if it's not? What if it's Roman? Maybe we can stop him and put an end to all of this."

"You're basing this on a "what if"?" he asked, narrowing his eyelids at them as Yang realized she had made the horrible mistake of choosing the wrong word. "Here's a what if scenario for you all...What if you don't make it out alive?" he asked, watching as their overconfidence shined forth as Yang waved off his concern, only adding fuel to his anger. "Roman is not someone you can just beat with strength and bravado alone. There's a reason he's been captured so rarely and there's a reason so many highly trained Huntsmen and Huntresses fail to do so each and everyday. So tell me, what makes you all think a couple of FIRST-YEARS with no experience under their belts can do what so many highly trained professionals couldn't!?" he finally shouted as a feeling of realization struck them like a tong of bricks.

Of course, they hadn't thought of that. They hadn't even begun to contemplate as to why Roman had been able to escape custody for so long nor had they stopped to consider whether or not they even should be risking their lives on the basis of a "what if" scenario.

"I know we're not ready...I know the chances of us getting injured are high...And I know that odds are it is the Black Hounds...But I have to try...I have to show them that peace is possible if they just listened to reason..." said Blake, lifting her head to stare into Jaune's cerulean eyes. "If I can show them that there is a way to achieve peace then I can put an end to the travesty before it can arise! And even if you tell me that odds are I'll die out there for the promise of an empty dream then at least I'll have considered it a victory well fought for!" she shouted, putting all her heart and soul into the words she fully believed in.

But sadly, Jaune had known people like her. Idealistic. Hopeful. Willing to risk their own lives for the promise of victory. And each time Jaune was force to watch them die in battle. To see the light fade from their eyes as they gasped their last breath and looked to him for guidance. Not again. Jaune had already seen enough death to last a lifetime. He wasn't going to watch it again. And so he cast his eyes downward, turning to face the open doorway before looking one last time at the allies he'd gained in his new life as Jaune Arc.

"Then you'll be killing not only yourself but your friends as well...And I won't be there to watch you die...Not again." said Jaune, closing the door as he walked away with a heavy heart in his chest. He needed to find Roman before they did.

No matter the cost.

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 **And now, here is the second version of this same chapter. I went for a more darker tone than lighthearted as I felt it could've been a neat direction to take the story but I ended up deciding lighthearted was for the best. Let me know if I made to right choice or wrong choice if you feel like it. Also, I've noticed that the longer I write, the more choppy my writing seems to become. I'm going to try and fix that though. Anyway here is "The Master Huntsman - Ch. 19 (Version 2)**

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Chapter Nineteen

It's been several months since the tragic demise of Cardin Winchester, leader of Team CRDL, and the disbandment of said team from Beacon Academy. It has also been several months since the mysterious disappearance of Jaune Arc, who vanished in the dead of night and has not been seen since. After being notified by a group of extremely distraught students, all having very close familial relationships with the ex-mercenary, Professor Ozpin made it his duty to find the missing boy. But even with the headmaster's direct solemn vow to locate the missing boy, his friends were left to wallow in self-pity and anger as their friend, who had changed their very lives since the day they'd met, vanished before their very eyes.

And none were more furious at Jaune's sudden disappearance than the hothead, short-tempered, buxom blonde, Yang Xiao Long. Every single day, she'd wake in her dorm room, hoping with desperation that Jaune would just walk in through the door with that same stupid smile on his face as if he had just lost track of time. And every single day, she'd be forced to watch her little sister grow sadder and sadder with each day he was gone. And the sadder her little sister became, the angrier Yang became.

Until one day, while she blowing off some heated steam in one of Beacon Academy's weight rooms, slamming her fists, which were wrapped in a protective cloth, into the sandbag that hung before her. Sweat poured from her forehead as she performed a right hook on the sandbag, knocking the heavy weight to the side with the force of her punch when the ringing sound of scroll dragged her attention away from the badly beaten sandbag. Turning her head to where she had laid her scroll, Yang's lilac eyes watched as the screen bloomed to life, revealing the picture of her little sister's happy face stuffed with cookies.

Smiling ever so slightly at the funny picture of her lovable little sister, Yang answered the video call, swiping the accept button when her little sister's face appeared in the middle of the screen. Though unlike the before picture, which showed her little sister happy as a clam, the real version of her little sister was not smiling as if she'd just found the secret recipe to Summer's famous cookies.

"Hi Yang." said Ruby, trying to mask her sadness with a facade of happiness. Though Yang could see through the mask due to being around her far longer than most.

"Hey Rubes." she replied back, wrapping a wet towel around her neck to cool herself off from her workout as she sat down on the bench and reached into her workout bag for a bottle of water.

"So, um, Weiss was hoping to invite us all down to the docks to check out some of the transfer students coming in for the Vytal Festival." said Ruby, watching her older sister squeeze the bottle of water, ejecting a stream of drinking water into her mouth.

"I don't know Ruby..." said Yang, looking away from the scroll's camera as her little sister frowned at the movement.

Ever since Jaune's mysterious disappearance, the spark of life that Yang and the others had within themselves had slowly became dim and it showed in their downtrodden expressions.

"Well, if you change your mind we'll be down by the docks." said Ruby, frowning at her older sister's depressed expression. "Yang?" she asked, getting her sister to look into the screen that housed her little sister, seeing a sad but hopeful smile. "Jaune will be back...I know he will." she said, knowing the exact feelings that were stirring within her older sister.

"How? How can you still be so hopeful? He left us again and he didn't even bother to say goodbye! AGAIN!" Yang shouted, throwing her water bottle into the wall, busting the cap and causing water to splash everywhere. "How can you still believe he'll come back after everything he's done?!" she finally shouted at her little sister, who despite being taken aback kept her hopeful smile.

"I can't explain it but I just have faith that he'll be back." said Ruby, holding her enclosed fist over her heart. "I don't know when but Jaune will come back. Because he cares about us even if he can't be there for us...He kinda reminds me of mom, almost never around and always off saving the world from evil but even if she was far away I always knew she loved me...That's why I'm hopeful and that's why I know he'll come back, no matter what." said Ruby, smiling hopefully as Yang stared at her little sister with wide eyes.

There were times where Yang was honestly surprised at the level of maturity her little sister often showed. And if she was being truthful, Yang would gladly admit that there were more times than not where she relied on her little sister for strength than she she did for her. Truly, Ruby was the glue that held Yang together even in times where it felt like the weight of the world was on her very shoulders.

"We'll be down by the docks, Yang. I hope we can see you there." Ruby said, smiling as she ended their call, leaving Yang to wallow in contemplation in the silence of the desolate work room.

A sigh escaped her mouth as her scroll's wallpaper showed a picture of herself, Ruby and Jaune enjoying a night out on Halloween when they were kids. Ruby wanted to go dressed as a super hero while she went as her trademarked boxer and Jaune was dressed as a little soldier with an eye patch. A melancholy smile graced her lips as she stared down at the picture.

"Please come home soon..." she spoke softly as she walked over to the sandbag to store it away. But the moment her fingers grazed the blue leather of the punching bag, the bottom of the sandbag gave way, dropping to the floor and spilling several pounds of sand onto the work room's floor but before she could utter a single word, the work room's dor opened to reveal the Combat Professor, Glynda Goodwitch, who glared at Yang through her glasses. "Ah c'mon..." Yang groaned, slapping her forehead with her right hand.

After several minutes of cleaning up the pile of sand off of the work room's floor under the very stern watchful eye of Glynda Goodwitch, Yang decided that it was probably best if she had something to take her mind off of Jaune's disappearance, even if the much needed distraction wouldn't last as long. However, upon arrival at the academy's station platform, Yang made the discovery that her little sister as well as the others had already boarded their transport ship and were most likely already nearing the docks. And though this had Yang releasing another sigh of annoyance, she nonetheless decided to board the next transport ship rather than staying behind with the pseudo-ghost of her best friend.

Once the next transport ship had finished it's docking procedure, the buxom blonde sat herself down in one of the seats and after several more students boarded at the last moment, the transport ship left the academy's station platform and made it's slow but leisurely sail towards the city of Vale. Along the way, as Yang was day dreaming about Jaune while staring out of the window, two people sitting across from her, a boy and a girl, noticed her and began whispering about Jaune.

"That's her." the boy whispered, leaning over to the girl next to him. "That's the girl who's partner disappeared after that Winchester-guy's funeral."

"Wow, you're right." she whispered back, neither of them paying attention to Yang's ever growing annoyance towards the two. "Why do you think he left them?" she asked the boy, who pondered for a moment.

"No idea, maybe they got into a fight or something?" he asked, thinking out loud when Yang turned to glare at them with red eyes full of anger.

"Would you two mind shutting up?" she demanded, trying to keep herself from blasting a hole in the transport ship right where the two annoying passengers were sitting.

Seeing Yang's fiery red eyes and sparking blonde hair, the two students quickly made their exit towards the back of the transport ship, along with everyone who wanted to continue living, away from the eventual rampaging blonde but not before the girl turned to whisper to the boy with a snide expression.

"Least now we know why he left." she whispered-but-not-really, walking past Yang, who stood from her seat to glare at the two students.

"That's it!" Yang shouted, grabbing the girl by her hair and raised her clenched fist, fully prepared to knock the girl unconscious when the boy pushed her away with a sudden show of force.

"Leave her alone! " he shouted at her, stepping between them and hold his hand out to hold Yang back. "It's not our fault your partner left! Maybe if you kept that temper under control he wouldn't have abandoned you or has it occurred to you that YOU might be the reason he left!?" he shouted, shocking Yang to her very core as the two left to join the others in the far back, leaving Yang to sit herself back in her chair and contemplate the boy's words.

Was what he'd said true? Had her temper and frustrations been the cause of Jaune's disappearance? Nearly every part of her tried desperately to convince her that what the boy had said was untrue. That Jaune had been friends her for longer than either of them could remember and even if she got frustrated or hurt him just for saying his usual "I prefer older, mature women" line whenever she tried to flirt with him, she was sure he'd never leave her just for that...But how could she be sure? After all, her own mother left her as a baby without so much as a goodbye or even a note. And when Summer died, Jaune left then as well. It seemed that no matter when or where, the people she loved would always leave her...Maybe...Maybe she was to blame for Jaune leaving.

Before Yang could continue to belittle herself thanks to her growing doubt and decreasing confidence, a hand gently prods her shoulder, causing her to jump in alarm and twist her head to see, the pilot of the transport ship, checking for any leftover passengers.

"Hey, you alright?" the pilot asks, seeming genuinely worried for Yang's sake.

After witnessing Yang's affirmative nod, the pilot releases a held sigh of relief before looking back behind her and seeing no one else. It had seemed that Yang was so lost within her owl self-doubt that she hadn't noticed the transport ship docking nor the passengers making a speedy retreat away from her.

"Well, we're not due to fly back to Beacon till the end of the day but if you're not feeling up to it, we can radio in a bullhead to take you back?" the pilot asks, not wanting to let a poor girl wander off if she wasn't feeling well.

"No. No, I'm fine." she quickly said, not wanting to go back to Beacon and face that same loneliness she'd felt when Jaune first left. Getting out of her chair, Yang began walking towards the exit to find her team. But not before turning back to say one last thank you to the pilot, who smiled beneath his helmet and bid the blonde farewell. She then proceeded to make her way towards the dock, where Ruby had said they would be.

However upon her arrival, Yang found that neither her sister, team or Team RNBW was anywhere near the docks, leaving her to lean against a nearby pole for stability as she sighed in annoyance, once more. Upon walking away from the docks, however, Yang mistakenly bumps into another person, causing the girl to fall backwards onto her butt with a clang. Seeing this, Yang hastily sticks her arm outward towards the girl in order to help her up.

"Sorry about that." she quickly apologized as the girl looked at her expanded hand with an intriguing expression. "Are you okay?" asks Yang, feeling somewhat conflicted as the girl looked up at her almost autonomously with a smile.

"I'm WONDERFUL! Thank you for asking." the girl exclaimed with a wide smile as Yang's right eyebrow raises in a quizzical expression.

"Do you...wanna get up?" she slowly asks the girl, watching with her hand still stretched out to the girl as she began to ponder at Yang's words before smiling from ear to ear.

"Yes, I would very much like that." she says, grasping Yang's hand and actually causing the bashing brawler some feint trouble due to the girls weight.

"Woah!" exclaimed Yang, finally pulling the girl from off of the ground before rubbing her hand with a grimace. "You're heavier than you look."

But instead of looking insulted at Yang's words, which even she had thought any girl would look insulted at those words, this strange girl merely smiled at Yang. "Thank you! My father says I'm made of the toughest metal known to mankind!" she exclaims, still smiling as Yang, for reasons beyond her own comprehension, couldn't help but return as she smiled back.

"Sounds like your dad and mine could share some stories." said Yang, smiling at the strange girl's smiling expression. "I'm Yang." she introduced herself, reaching out with her hand which the girl took in her's.

"I'm Penny! It's a pleasure to meet you, Yang!" exclaimed Penny, the two of them sharing a firm handshake before letting go and allowing their hands to drop to their sides.

"Well, sorry for running into you, Penny." Yang apologized before turning around with a wave and a smile. "See ya friendo." said Yang, turning to walk away when suddenly Penny mysteriously appeared before her with wide eyes filled with wonder.

"You called me "friend"!" she randomly exclaimed with an enthusiastic tone, confusing Yang even more and increasing Penny's level on Yang's weirdness scale. "Am I really your FRIEND?" asks Penny, leaning in closer and closer to Yang's face with more and more intimidation.

"Only if you stop leaning in so close." answered Yang, not realizing the untold horrors she'd just unleashed upon herself as Penny raised her arms into the air with an ecstatic leap.

"SENSATIONAL!" she shouts, smiling as if someone had just handed her the key to solving all of Remnant's problems while Yang watched, feeling very conflicted over whether or not she should run away or just blast herself in the face with her gauntlets. "We can paint our nails, and try on clothes, and talk about cute boys!" she exclaimed, unaware at the effect her last words had on the buxom blonde as she felt her heart ache with the terrible reminder that Jaune was no longer by her side.

Penny's words about "cute boys" already having an adverse effect on Yang as her smile twisted into a depressing frown, her lilac eyes lost their shine becoming dull and faded, and more droplets of tears leaked from the corners of her eyes. Without warning, Yang slowly slide against the wall, falling slowly to the ground where she began cradling her head in her arms while Penny watched, unsure of what to do. Not wanting to her new friend leaking anymore fluids from her ocular viewing ports, Penny sat beside the still-crying Yang, making sure to place her shoulder next to Yang's.

"What's the matter, Yang?" asked Penny, her expression showcasing worry towards her new friend.

"I-It's nothing, Penny." Yang attempted to say, trying to avoid the problem but Penny was fully prepared for such a scenario as she soon wrapped her arms around Yang, holding her as Yang looked to be confused over Penny's action.

"It's okay, Yang." said Penny, closing her eyes and smiling a comforting smile as she held her friend. "I am here to help you, no matter what. Because that's what friends are for. Or so I've researched."

Yang couldn't help but laugh at Penny's words. Here she was crying over Jaune leaving her again, like her own mother and Summer as well, and Penny was the one consoling her. Even if her choice of words was a bit strange, Yang couldn't help but find solidarity with Penny as she wrapped her own arms around Penny. The two holding each other in silence and even long after Yang's tears had dried up.

"Penny, do you mind if I tell you a story?" asked Yang, looking up into the cloudy sky as Penny sat beside her.

"That's sounds sensational, Yang." she replies with a smile on her face as Yang began her tale of how she had come to fall in love with the boy she called, Jaune Arc.

Throughout most of the day, Yang and Penny talked about Yang's past with Jaune; from how they had known each other since they were babies to when Yang first discovered that she'd grown to have a crush on Jaune to the fateful day when Jaune left to begin his journey to get stronger for her sake to recently when he disappeared once again without so much as a goodbye. While speaking of Jaune, Yang's psyche would constantly flip-flop back and forth with differing emotions depending on which memory she spoke of. Like that time Jaune had first laughed at one of her jokes, prompting her to begin telling as many jokes as she could think of in hopes of hearing him laugh again to the time he'd been having a nightmare and Yang had to watch as her stepmom, Summer, held him in her loving arms while humming a lullaby. Sure there were plenty of times Jaune pissed her off to know end but she always loved him. And despite his many bad qualities, his good qualities downright trumped the bad.

"But then a few weeks ago...this asshat named Cardin was killed during a class assignment out in the Forever Fall Forest and Jaune...He started acting different." said Yang, frowning at the memory. "He stopped coming to classes...Stopped eating...And sometimes he'd sneak out when he thought we were asleep and wouldn't come back till the very next night with no explanation whatsoever. Until one day...He left...And he never came back. Now he's gone and we have no way of contacting him...I don't even know why he left..." said Yang, looking back up into the clouds was the floated across the sky.

"So, Jaune is your boyfriend?" asked Penny, watching in confusion as Yang turned to face her, her entire face as red as a tomato and her mouth agape.

"NO!" she shouted, instantly clamping her hands over her mouth as several people turned to look at her after her random outburst. "No, he...He's not my boyfriend, Penny. He's just a friend that I've know for a VERY long time and he just so happens to be a boy, okay?" she asks, though quite sure that not even she believed what she was saying. Thankfully, Penny took this excuse quite well as she turned away from her with a very intriguing and quizzical expression.

"But you're mad at him?" she asks, causing Yang's lilac eyes to shift into a furious red as her blonde hair began to spark as Yang began imagining all of the painful things she'd do to Jaune if she saw him again.

"Like you wouldn't believe..." mumbled Yang, calming herself down as her red eyes shifted back to lilac and her hair stopped sparking.

"So, your friend, who happens to be a boy, named Jaune, leaves and hasn't come back and you have no way on getting into contact with him?" asks Penny, immediately bringing down Yang's mood like an emotional roller-coaster that she's forced to ride until the end of time.

"Yeah...I just wish I could find him somehow..." she said absentmindedly as Penny began staring into empty space, her body shaking ever-so slightly as her eyes glowed, causing her to blink as the reverted back to normal.

"Yang." said Penny, catching Yang's attention, who turned to look at the strange girl with a smile on her face. "I believe I may know where Mr. Arc might be located or rather where he is most likely to be." said Penny, watching as Yang's eyes widened to astronomical levels before she got to her knees, placing her hands on Penny's shoulders.

"Are you serious?" she asks, praying with every ounce of her soul that Penny was telling her the truth. "Please, tell me you're being serious right now." she was practically begging at this point as Penny smiled and nodded affirmatively. And without warning, Yang shot up from her seating position, throwing her arms up in the air and jumping in joy over Penny's words before regaining her focus and turning to address her. "Ok, Penny, where will Jaune be?" she asks with a smile threatening to split her face in half.


	20. Party Crashers

**Greetings everyone,**

 **Welcome to the twentieth chapter of "The Master Huntsman."**

 **We've finally made it to the big two-zero!**

 **Thank you all for the amazing feedback and criticisms throughout this story's journey, it's been freakin' awesome writing this story for you all to enjoy.**

 **Recently, I've come down with a seasonal flu so this chapter will actually be split into two parts as opposed to it's original singular chapter. Hopefully, this flu doesn't impede me from bringing you guys more chapters but don't worry I'll be sure to get plenty of rest between these chapters and my work.**

 **Don't forget to check out some of my other stories as well; "Operation: Jaune's Ex-Girlfriend" has gotten wildly popular and next Sunday will see the release of it's ninth chapter so** **give it a read whenever you can.**

 **Next Scheduled Release Date:**

 **August 19th: "The Master Huntsman - Ch. 21"**

 **Make sure Favorite, Follow, and leave a Review!**

 **Till next time!**

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Chapter Twenty

Tonight was the night everything in Jaune's life would change.

Everything was riding on him, much like the titan who held the sky upon his shoulders as punishment to the gods. But unlike the sky, which rested squarely on the shoulders of a mythical being, what rested on Jaune's shoulders was the futures of his friends and family.

His investigations were seemingly endless but at last he had just enough to warrant direct action with the man called Roman Torchwick. All evidence pointed at Roman being the mastermind behind the recent rise of Dust shop robberies but Jaune knew better than to assume that Roman had any say so in the matter.

For one thing, Roman Torchwick was a human and it was made perfectly clear that the Black Hounds despised the humans with a burning passion. After their cell had broken off from the White Fang, the Black Hounds went on a spree of terrorism against the Humans and the White Fang. Their claim was that they stood for the injustices of the Faunus but anyone could see that in truth they had no desire for equality.

What they desired was subjugation.

But Blake couldn't see that, or rather she refused to see it. There were often times where Blake was very closed off from the others, often remaining the soft-spoken of the group. But then there were times where she'd become out-spoken and passionate for the things she cared for. As if someone had flipped a switch in her brain and effectively turned her into a completely different person.

It was almost an uncanny resemblance between Blake and Futaba that it both delighted and infuriated him.

Nevertheless, there was a high chance that his friends would make their way towards the docks, one way or another. But Jaune determined to end this night before anyone could get hurt.

Rising to his feet, Jaune watched as two bullheads flew above his position, their vtol-like thrusters angling themselves downward to provide some minor thrust and ensure their safe landing. Their sliding doors opening to reveal several masked Black Hounds members, whom all lowered themselves out of the bullhead's interior. Several of the masked members immediately headed towards the containers, using some crowbars to forcibly break their locks and reveal their contents while others headed off towards the warehouse for an unknown reason.

The last man to exit the bullhead was none other than the target Jaune had been searching for. Or at least, it should've been as a muscular man wearing a Black Hounds uniform exited the bullhead, carrying a massive saw-like weapon on his back. The sleeves of his uniform were gone from sight, exposing his muscular arms and tattoo.

WHAT THE HELL!?

Where the hell was Roman!?

Seeing the muscular man step outside the bullhead, Jaune quickly released his weapon from it's confine, changing it into it's long-range mode and connecting the wireless scope interface to his HUD, allowing him to aim at far away target without the need to look down the scope. Keeping the crosshairs trained on the man's head as he walked towards a group of Black Hounds members. From where Jaune could witness, it looked as if the muscular Black Hounds member was a high rank than the others, given the level of intimidation he felt from his location.

It very nearly caused him to go back down memory lane as he remembered the amount of times he'd use his immense level of bloodlust to terrify his opponents into submission. His scope remained trained on the muscular guy's head, watching him like a falcon watched a field mouse when his ELS picked up on a presence behind him. But before he could turn his body to face the presence behind him, Jaune found himself being clocked in the jaw and falling towards the ground. Luckily, Jaune had his Aura and experience to rely on, allowing him to twist his body mid-plummet and empower his lower region with Aura, preventing injury.

However, that was only the start to Jaune's list of problems on this night as he soon found himself surrounded by the various Black Hounds members, their stolen arsenal all aimed directly at him while the muscular man stood silent in the background with his massive chainsaw in hand. At the sound of a tremendous thud, Jaune turned to see the sardonic smile of Roman Torchwick, his weaponized cane twirling around his wrist as he landed with a spring in his step.

"Ah, nice work on the distraction big guy." said Roman, walking over and patting the exposed muscular arm of the man still holding the saw. "I figured our little party crasher would show up tonight and lo n' behold here you are." said Roman, leaning against his cane as he watched Jaune with a careful eye. "Got to be honest though, I'd never imagine you'd look like this." his eyes narrowed while his smirk turned devilish with a light lick of the corner of his mouth.

"I'm only to ask this once, Torchwick." said Jaune, straightening himself out as the Black Hounds tensed at his movements and the immense bloodlust emanating from his body. "Why are you and the Black Hounds working together?" he asked, keeping his eyes trained on Roman but making sure to use his ELS to watch out for any more surprise attacks. "I thought the they despised us humans, so it's a bit unnerving seeing them working with a lowlife like you." said Jaune, watching as Roman continued twirling his cane on his wrist.

"I suppose you could say the Black Hounds and I are on a temporary alliance to further our goals." said Roman, walking around in a circle but keeping his green eyes trained on Jaune's cerulean blues. "And while I'd love to do the whole "villain reveals his plan to the hero" bit but I'm afraid our little meet n' greet has come to an end." said Roman, snapping his fingers and signalling to the other Black Hounds member to bombard Jaune with a barrage of bullets. Unfortunately, for them, a red cloaked blur zoomed past their vision, carting Jaune away just as the bullets flew past where his body once was before implanting themselves into the wall behind him.

Stunned at their target's sudden disappearance the armed Black Hounds turned to see the red-hooded girl, wielding a massive red and black scythe, was none other than Ruby Rose. But before they could put two and two together, the remaining Black Hounds were quickly dispatched when several glowing white glyphs appeared beneath them, launching them into the air.

Their bodies were then pulled together when the raven-haired beauty with feline ears, Blake Belladonna, appeared with a stretch of black ribbon when she, too, landed beside Jaune and the red-hooded scythe wielder.

Hearing the commotion, the remaining mass of Black Hounds members quickly rushed their way towards the area, filling the surrounding area with a variety of stolen weaponry and itching for a battle. But just as the two girls mysteriously appeared, the group was soon joined by others as a cloud of pink explosive clouds rose to the night sky and Nora Valkyrie, the madwoman, carried her massive weighted hammer that slammed in the crowd, creating a ripple effect that sent many Black Hounds flying backwards while she smiled.

She was soon joined by Lie Ren, who leaped through the cloud, twirling through the air before landing with his feet planted on a Black Hounds member's face, implanting his head into the ground as the boy rolled away and leaped over the crowd to join the group.

But their party crashers were just continuing to grow in numbers as Pyrrha Nikos, the red-haired amazon, leaped into the crowd, blocking several trigger-happy gunfire with her shield before launching it at the point of origin. The sweet sound of the shield bouncing off of the members' faces was enough to make Jaune smile when said amazon landed beside him, weapons at the ready.

Then before any of the Black Hounds could recognize the danger that was about to befall them, a massive white glyph seemingly appeared beneath a select group and they soon found themselves trapped in a massive column of ice and standing atop the column was a the white-haired beauty, Weiss Schnee.

But the biggest dramatic entrance was made by the blondie with a short fuse, Yang Xiao Long, who slammed into the crowd of Black Hounds, cracking the ground beneath her before angling her gauntlets behind her. Their backlash knocking back several armed members into submission while also launching the girl towards the group, where she landed directly in front of Jaune, who glared at the group with a furious but understandable anger.

But before he could utter a single word, Yang clamped her hand over his open mouth, preventing him from speaking aloud while the others kept the Black Hounds safely at bay. Her eyes were clouded by her flowing blonde locks that hung themselves over her forehead, her lilac eyes avoiding his furious glare while she kept her grip on his shoulder and mouth. Her heart thumped faster and faster as she remained in close proximity with her crush and he was very much aware of it due to his ELS, though she was unaware of this fact.

"Don't talk." she whispered softly, slowly taking her hand away from his mouth and dropping both arms to her sides. "I know you're angry and I know you only yelled at us and Blake because you care about us... But we care about you too!" she shouted, lifting her head up to show her lilac eyes had become red while tears spilled from the corners of her eyes. "What would we do if you got yourself killed?" she asked, leaning against his chest, where she grasped onto his shirt and tugged at him. "You don't have to do everything by yourself." she said, looking up into his cerulean eyes. "We're here for you, Jaune. And we'll always be here to kick ass and deliver hilarious puns even when the deck is stacked against us." she said, smiling as Jaune watched on in silence. "Even if we're outgunned, outmanned, and shit out of luck, we'll continue fighting. Because that's what it means to be a badass, right?" said Yang, smirking as the others smiled at the mentally elderly ex-mercenary.

And, once again, Jaune was at a lost for words as his eyes lingered on Yang's cocky smile. Emotions ranging from pride in his friends to anger over their lack of common sense filled his adolescent body. But what came along was not just a kaleidoscope of emotions but the vivid memories of his previous life and of the allies he had come to know and love. There were times he hated their antics, their naivete, and their utter lack of fear in the face of overwhelming odds. But just as he cherished his former pupils and students so, too, did he come to cherish the few that acted as a buffer between him and the miniature army of Black Hounds.

A smirk came upon his lips but before Jaune could muster up his words, the sound of Roman's hands meeting one another gained the attention of everyone around him, including Jaune's group. His expression of utter boredom showcasing his true feelings towards the group and their antics as he sighed upon his last clap.

"Well, can't say I was expecting to be dragged into some teen soap drama but hey, I'll give you a B for a solid effort." said Roman, snapping his fingers once more. And in that instance, the remaining Black Hounds all raised their weapons to meet the eyes of Jaune and his friends, who all tensed under their enemies threatening gaze. "Now, I don't know how I can be anymore clearer so if you call please just die already, that'd be great." said Roman, smiling with his palm raised, his very hand motion keeping the group from pulling their triggers and turning Jaune and his friends into swiss-cheese.

"Why are you doing all of this?" Ruby suddenly asked, gripping her scythe's handle as her gazed into Roman's green eyes.

Roman couldn't help but sigh at Ruby's tone, bringing his hand to meet his forehead. "Believe me, Red, if there was some other way of doing this, I'd be doing it. I'm not one for staying in the spotlight for too long." said Roman, his annoyed expression briefly shifting into one of genuine remorse before he closed his eyes and held his head. "But she said that this was the best course of action and there's always been one thing that I believed wholeheartedly." said Roman smiling as he raised his bloodlust. "Sayuri is always right."

Before anyone could react, Jaune had disappeared from sight and in an instant had clashed against Roman's cane, just narrowly blocking Jaune's surprise attack as a combat knife was held above his face. But despite the absolute fury that welled within Jaune's eyes, his bloodlust raised to it's maximum, causing many of the Black Hounds to drop their weapons out of fear, Roman still remained smiling the entire time, almost mockingly as Jaune struggled to push his blade closer to Roman's exposed neck.

"WHERE IS SHE!?" he shouted, his tone filled with venom as she and Roman continued their power struggle while the others watched on with a mixture of amazement and fear. "WHERE! IS! SAYURI!?" he shouted once more, dropping his other arm downward, clasping Roman's exposed arm.

But, much like before, Jaune found himself at a lost as Roman had dislodged himself from Jaune's grasp and had managed to back far enough away that it almost seemed supernatural and all with a smile on his face. Jaune's eyes narrowed on Roman's sardonic smile, his fists clenching with anger as several questions filled his mind.

How had Roman manage to bypass his ELS technique?

Where had he gained the strength to shrug off his attacks?

But most importantly, what was his connection to his former master?

Well, he was determined to find that out as his Aura flared around his body and Jaune launched himself at Roman's body, unleashing his weapon as he fired a barrage of explosive rounds at his target, who's own Aura flared up as he dodged Jaune's bombardment. The tow of them eventually moving their fight away from the group, leaving Jaune's friends to fight against the onslaught of Black Hounds. The Black Hounds all unleashed a barrage of bullets upon the group, their safety only assured when a massive wall of ice erupted between the two groups.

"What the heck was that about!?" shouted Weiss, her eyes aimed directly at Yang, who looked just as surprised as the others. "Did you know he could do that!?" she shouted once again.

"How the heck should I know!?" Yang shouted back, her lilac eyes briefly flashing red before reverting back to their normal hue. "Jaune's never once mentioned anyone called "Sayuri"! And he's never done any of THAT before either!"

"Well, clearly Jaune and this "Sayuri" have a history together." said Ren, checking his ammunition absentmindedly. "And I'm just guessing here but I have a pretty decent hunch that their history is not a pleasant one." he finished as a massive saw blade managed to cut it's way through the massive wall of ice.

"That wall isn't going to last us forever." said Pyrrha, turning to face Blake. "Do you think Sun will be able to do what he promised?" she asked, mentioning the Faunus stowaway a few days back.

"I hope so." she said, glancing at the horizon as her exposed feline ears twitched in the breeze and the ice wall began to crack from the saw blade's continuous rotations.

The sound of Ruby's weapon cocking gained everyone's attention. Their eyes all meeting the adrenaline-filled smile of their little Grimm reaper, the wind gently brushing against her frilly combat skirt as she held her weapon's shaft in her dainty hands. They knew that their night was only just beginning and their plan was well on it's way to completion.

"Then as Jaune would say...LET'S KICK SOME ASS!" the little red reaper shouted just as the icy wall broken into pieces and their vision was swarmed with the sight of the Black Hounds, all charging towards them with their weapons at the ready. And at the forefront was none other than the man who cut down their defenses with a literal chainsaw. Ruby angled her scythe's barrel downward, pulling the trigger that sent her barreling towards the massive man. The two of them clashed with Ruby, smacking his body through the crowd of Black Hounds.

It was time to crash this party.


	21. Out Of The Bag

**Greetings everyone,**

 **Welcome to the 21st chapter of everyone's favorite Jaune-centric, ex-mercenary story, "The Master Huntsman."**

 **The chapter marks the end of the Beacon Arc as this story will be placed on a temporary hiatus as to lessen the stress of working on multiple stories at once and in order to make space for my other story "The Knight and the Wizard" which chronicles the journey of Jaune as the new host for the eternal wizard we all know as Ozpin. It is set to be release a week, or so, after the release of Volume 6 for RWBY, which is set to release on October 27th, so be sure to check the story out and get caught up. And unfortunately, I'm not entirely sure when the volume will end, so this story might be left on the shelf for a while but don't fret, I don't plan on ending it Evangelion-style.**

 **In other news, one of the authors I check on constantly, jauneforever, is writing a Jaune-centric story in which Jaune is depicted as a servant class from the Fate series. The first chapter is on the berserker class and it is epic. But the awesome part is that the Jaune from "The Knight and the Wizard" will be in the story, which is ten times more epic. Be sure to check them out and show them some love.**

 **The month of September will see the re-release of "The Arcful Dodger" "Don't Mess With An Arc", both of which I recommend you all check out when they're re-released.** **And don't forget to check back next Sunday for the next chapter of "Operation: Jaune's Ex-Girlfriend."**

 **Next Scheduled Release Date:**

 **To be announced at a later juncture...yeah, juncture.**

 **Make sure to Favorite, Follow, and leave a Review.**

 **Till next time!**

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Chapter Twenty-One

It was one thing to fight against a horde of Grimm, it's another to fight against an army of "misguided" racially-charged Faunus, who had an intense desire to run you through with a spear, as evident by Ruby as she dodged said spear before hooking it with her scythe and rotating at an accelerated speed, flinging the attacking Black Hounds member into his fellow brethren. With Grimm, you didn't need to worry about "going easy" but with the Black Hounds, she and her friends had to pull back their punches, except for Yang, who was going berserk in the miniature army, shooting up concussive flares from her gauntlets with reckless abandon. Ruby watched as her friends fought against the seemingly, endless waves of Black Hounds while the friend they had came to save was fighting against the master criminal of Vale...And was losing.

That observation had Ruby on edge and filled with anxiety. She had never once believed that Jaune would ever be beaten by anyone. He was the strongest person she knew but here he was getting beaten by Roman of all people, a guy that they had previously beaten into retreating. So then how was Roman beating Jaune now? Not to mention Jaune's freak out over this Sayuri-person's name drop? It all continued to build up questions in her little head that she had a feeling that they would go unanswered.

Unfortunately, Ruby would just have to put her thoughts on the back burner and hope that they all make it out of this with little injury. But as she witnessed Jaune being kicked by Roman into one of the nearby warehouses, a cloud of dust and smoke rising into the air as Roman nonchalantly walked to where he had kicked Jaune, Ruby had a feeling that their night was not going to go as they'd hoped.

Meanwhile, Jaune was struggling to pick himself back up, coughing as a light brown cloud of dust and debris slowly began to fade away as Roman's silhouette continued towards him. Rage and curiosity consumed his mind as he watched the slow-moving shadow draw closer. His fingers curled around his rifle's grip, itching to pepper Roman's body with bullets but he held himself back, knowing that it would have little effect.

 _"I don't get it."_ he thought to himself as he rose to his feet, with rifle in hand as Roman's form exited through the cloud of dust and the two of them stared down at one another. _"Just months ago, Roman was about as skilled as an A-rank maybe even low-tier S-Rank. But now, it's almost as if he jumped straight into master rank."_ thought Jaune as Roman twirled his cane before planting it's end on the concrete ground with a devilish smirk.

"I've got to say, you are exactly like she said you were." said Roman, still smirking like the asshole he was while Jaune gritted his teeth. "Though, truth be told, I always thought you'd be taller." said Roman, putting emphasis on the last word and just barely triggering Jaune's berserker button. Even in this new life, Jaune hated anything that had do with his size. And for once he was thankful that he wouldn't have to go years of being mistaken for a brat course it didn't mean that Jaune didn't still absolutely hate being a child, just ask Yang what happens when someone calls him a shrimp.

"Where is Sayuri, Roman." he demanded once more, causing Roman to release a sigh as he slowly shook his head.

"Sayuri. Sayuri. Christ, it's like you have a one-track mind when it comes to that woman." said Roman, tilting his head just in time to avoid a bullet fired from Jaune's rifle.

"I WON'T ASK AGAIN, ROMAN!" he shouted, glaring through his red eyes as the red markings slightered around his body before peeling off and forming into bladed tentacles that floated around his body while Roman watched on with indifference. "Where - is - Sayuri?" he asked, putting emphasis on each word as Roman sighed and looked to the broken moon that shined above through the warehouse's glass panels.

"Sayuri is everywhere." said Roman, spewing the same "Sayuri is amazing" shit that Jaune had come to expect from those that are too idiotic or misguided to ignore. Sayuri always did have a knack for enlisting the most broken to her philosophical views. And it was looking like Roman was another one of those mindless drones that were too stupid to think for themselves.

"Great, another one of her lunatic followers..." he mumbled to himself as Roman went on a tangent embellishing every deed Sayuri had ever done for him.

"She opened my eyes to the truth." said Roman as several marks on his body began to glow bright blue as he raised his right arm, a bright cyan crystal slowly exiting his palm through a slit as he glared at Jaune with rage-filled eyes. "She changed my life just as she had done for you, Morito." said Roman, launching the crystal at Jaune, who jumped way as the crystal embedded itself into the concrete floor that was now frozen with massive spike of ice jutting out of the ground. Jaune stood with a shocked expression while Roman twirled his cane with one hand while the other was priming to fire another crystal at Jaune's current location and all with a shit-eating grin on his face and furious anger in his eyes. "I spent most of my life listening to stories of you. How Sayuri saved you from living a life of hell. How she turned you into a man she could be proud of. I spent every waking moment living in your shadow!" shouted Roman, firing another crystal at Jaune, who dodged the attack as the crystal created another ice spike. "I turned myself into a living Dust crystal just to beat you! I may have lost last time but this time, I'll prove to her that I'm the one who deserves her attention!" he shouted once more, chucking his cane to the side as the marks on his body glowed brighter as several blue crystals began jutting from his body and his green eyes shifted into pure icy-blue. "I'm beat you down to a frozen pulp, old man!"

And for the first moment since he was reborn into the life of Jaune Arc, son of Orville and Iris Arc, younger brother to seven multi-colored older sisters, Morito felt that there was something missing from his life. The knowledge that Sayuri was reborn into this new world reignited this feeling within him and now here he stood before against a fellow master rank with unnatural superhuman abilities. Adrenaline pumped through his veins and a maniac smile graced his lips as he, too, chucked his rifle to the side and fully activated his semblance. His blonde hair became as white as snow. His cerulean blue eyes became flooded was red. And his white skin tone darkened into a burnt umber as the red marks on his body shifted into two arm blades and a set of bloody red wings.

It was time that Jaune let loose and showed this arrogant, attention-seeking brat what happens when you mess with Morito Hayama.

Meanwhile, outside the warehouse where the two super-powered master ranks were just about to begin their fight, Teams RNBW and JYPR continued to fight against the swarming numbers of the Black Hounds. Suddenly, several bullheads came soaring overheard, creating a harsh gust of wind the very nearly created a domino effect on the men and women down below. The bullhead's spotlights bloomed to life as the scanned the swarm of Black Hounds. Catching the tail of one of the bullheads, Blake watched as she saw the White Fang's symbol on the bullhead's sides and the VPD symbol on the other.

"Attention all Black Hounds members!" said the announcer, who held a megaphone outside the bullhead's sliding door, her form left silhouetted in the moonlight. "As of this moment, you are all under arrest. If you comply with our requests and offer no confrontation then know that you will receive a fair treatment and a just trial." said the announcer as the bullhead hovered in midair. "However, if you choose to retaliate then know that we will be forced to use aggressive actions." said the announcer, her words already having an effect on the Black Hounds members as they began to shout and howl at the flying machine above them.

Suddenly, the ceiling, and subsequent roof, of the nearby warehouse exploded into a mesh of dust and debris as Jaune soared into the sky just as massive spike of ice rose into the sky, very nearly damaging the flying bullhead, that pulled away at the last second to dodge the sudden ice spike. This caused an uproar as the remaining Black Hounds all began to scramble in retreat. In retaliation, the bullheads opened to reveal several armed White Fang and SWAT officers the repelled down into the crazed crowd. Roman created another spike of ice the rose to the sky with his standing atop it like a crazed god as Jaune landed on the spike. One of the bullheads soared over their heads, it's spotlight landing upon them. Roman smiled, extending his arms outward like a the criminal showman he pretended to be.

"Looks like we have quite the audience, eh Morito?" asked Roman, smiling through the pain as more crystals jutted from his body, some even beginning to form over his body as red liquid seeped between the crystals, giving them a red outline.

Jaune watched as Roman's physical form was slowly taken over by the crystallized Dust bit by bit. He'd seen a similar effect with the crazed mad man from his early days. The man was obsessed with attaining perfect through the use of mechanical enhancements to the point that he was more machine than man and it all it did was dwindle his humanity while extending his lifespan. Until, in the end, he was nothing but the shell of a former man.

Plus he was into little girls and Jaune absolutely despised that.

Now, it was looking to be that Roman was going to go down that same route through the use of Dust. And all to gain the favor of his former master, a woman who held no interest for anyone or anything other than her own twisted philosophy and goals. It mattered not, who or what she used to further her own goals. Only that she attained them no matter the cost. Even if it meant the lives of those who followed her. And the worst part of it was that her followers would gladly give their lives, their humanity, their very being if it meant gaining her favor.

"She won't care about you, Roman!" Jaune shouted back over the deafening roar of the Bullhead's thrusters and the screams of the Black Hounds down below. "Sayuri is incapable of affection! She's a sociopath and she'll do anything to get what she wants! Even if it means hundreds, if not thousands, of people die for it! You have a chance to put her tyranny to an end! You can be free of her control over you!" he continued to shout, feeling urges to save the surely confused Roman from his former master's hypnotic-like control.

"You're wrong!" Roman shouted back, swinging his right arm off to the side and indirectly creating another ice spike from the side of the ice spire. "She cares about me! I know it! Without her I'd be dead in some gutter!" he continued to shout, denying the truth that Jaune was saying to him. "She said that once she acquired her goal that we'd change the world together! That I'd have a part in it's wrecking and it's rebirth! I will NOT go back to being poor and alone on the streets! NEVER!" he shouted, thrusting his arm forward as his right arm was covered by blue crystallized Dust. "It's time I showed her that I'm the one who deserves her attention, Morito!" he shouted, leaping at Jaune as the crystals on his right arm formed into a ice-like arm-blade.

The two of the clashed against one another, shards of crystals and droplets of blood flew into the night sky as the bullheads continued their assaults and the Black Hounds attempted retreat. Roman's other hand came rising up in an attempt to uppercut Jaune's jaw but the former mercenary was prepared as he leaned back, the fist soaring upward and leaving Roman open for a counter. Jaune thrusted his other arm forward, creating a set of bloody-red claws the clashed against the makeshift armored Dust, creating more shards that crashed to the ground. The shards glowed and Jaune was forced to back away as several spikes of ice instantly appeared where the shards had dropped.

Roman's form was nearly taken over by the Dust crystals, his only visible portions where his head, his left arm, and his right leg. But the crystals only continued to slowly rise from Roman's skin, causing him more pain that was undoubtedly drowned out by his adrenaline. The horrifying scene was bringing up dark memories of when he and the other master ranks found the Child Room HQ. The sight of children, broken, beaten, and torn to pieces, all with dark markings of various failed Dead Languages was enough to make him vomit. He often asked himself as to how the woman he had thought to be family, and the woman he loved as if she was his mother, could be such a monster. To use the orphaned children of war like this...As if they were merely playthings in her toy box or pawns in her little chess game. She had done to Roman what she had done to Iria and what she had attempted to do with himself when he was younger. She warped their psyche and turned them into seemingly mindless drones, who would do anything to gain her favor. It sickened him to think that his master would became such wasteful human pond scum and it only furthered his desire to see her brought to justice.

Jaune leaped forward, creating tendrils with his bloody-red marks that whiplashed at Roman's form. He had attempted to cover himself with his makeshift Dust armor but Jaune was ready for such a move as he wrapped the tendrils over his limbs and with a mighty pull, tossed Roman's form into the air. His blue crystallized body soared above the crowd and bullheads before Jaune appeared, flying towards him with his wings. Roman quickly fired off more shards from his exposed hand but Jaune had dodged each one as he flew closer and closer towards his intended target.

The two of them clashed against each other with Jaune turning their axis in midair and nosediving towards the ground. Roman attempted to break free by summoning more ice spikes from his body but Jaune's semblance countered each one by slicing at them with multiple sharpened tendrils. And with a sound breaking boom and a mushroom cloud of dust and debris, the two found themselves in a crater in the middle of the waterfront. Jaune struggled as he checked his vitals and Aura level with his HUD.

"22%" he said to himself as his appearance changed back to normal and his marking receded back into his skin, invisible until they were called upon again. "Used too much power in that last move." he said, struggling to get up when the edges of the crater was taken over by VPD, White Fang agents, and his friends.

"Jaune!" shouted Ruby, holding her red scythe in her hand. "Are you okay!?"

"I'm fine, Ruby!" he replied, holding his side with a grimace.

Suddenly, silence fell upon them as they all turned their attention back to Roman. His form was nearly taken over by the still slowly growing patches of crystallized Dust. His face remained visible to all as he glared at Jaune's form with a burning fury. Jaune slowly approached his form with an expression of pity and remorse. Roman was yet another soul that was damaged by his former master's actions. Iria, who used her own little sister as a suicide bomber to win a war. Salim, who had been raised from the dead by her wicked experiments. Cardin, who's future was ripped from him due the promise of power. And now, Roman, who had been "saved" by the very same woman who had "saved" him from a dark past and made him into the respectable, kind man he was today. He felt a sort of kinship with Roman as he stood before him.

Roman laughed at his expression of pity and remorse, resigning himself to his fate, frozen in a crystallized statue of Dust. "What's the matter, old man?" he mockingly asked. "Never seen a human turn into a living Dust crystal before?" asked Roman, laughing into the velvety night sky, the starry lights blinking in the darkness as the broken moon hovered overhead. "We both knew that this was bound to happen sooner or later."

"I'm sorry, Roman." said Jaune, gritting his teeth and curling his fists in anger.

"Stop with the pity, you senile old man." Roman demanded with a smirk. "I'm the villain, remember?" he asked, mockingly. "And the villain always loses to the good guys." he said before looking up at Ruby's face, her silver eyes filled with remorse as his expression shifted into guilt. "This won't be the last time, Morito." said Roman. "Sayuri is planning something big. Something that involves merging Dust crystals with mortal bodies." said Roman, smirking as the Dust crystals slowly began to cover his face. "This is just the beginning, Morito. Sayuri will get what she wants, even if it means taking away everything you know and love." said Roman, laughing as the crystals over took his face, silencing his laughter and leaving Jaune to stare into the empty-void of Roman's eyes through a layer of crystallized Ice-Dust.

Suddenly, his form began to glow at rapid pace as tiny shards fell off of Roman's crystallized body and onto the ground, creating multiple ice spikes. Jaune took a step back as an ice spike exploded out of Roman's back, causing Jaune to take another step back. Another spike exploded out of his right shoulder and Jaune turned to face his allies and run just as a massive ice spike rose from the ground beneath his previous location. He ran towards his allies as more and more ice spikes rose from the ground, breaking away at the concrete, creating cracks. Everybody, move!" he commanded as a massive ice spike rose where Roman stood, consuming the crater's whole and just narrowly hitting Jaune. The massive ice spike rose into the night sky with several more spikes of ice exploding from it's sides until, in Roman's place, stood a massive collection of ice spikes. The group stared up at the marvelous sight just as the sun began to rise from the ocean's horizon, signalling a brand new day and the end of their adventurous Saturday night.

Several VPD police cars pulled into the waterfront, with many of them stopping and getting out of their squad cars to gaze upon the amazing sight, when Yang rushed to Jaune's side, hugging him in a vice-like grip. Soon, his form with overtaken by his friends, who all joined him at his side. When he rose to his feet, he soon found that Blake was standing before him with her eyes cast downward and her feline ears folded. Her hands locked together in front of her as she avoided his gaze.

But before she could utter a single word, she felt a familiar warmth on her head. Her head raised and she found herself staring into the warm smile and cerulean blue eyes of the boy she had fallen for. Without a word, she wrapped her arms around his form, digging her head into his shoulder as tears of joy streamed down her cheeks.

In the background, several White Fang and VPD were making their arrests on the Black Hounds they'd managed to capture when another car pulled into the waterfront and out of the vehicle stepped out the headmaster of Beacon Academy and his ward, Ozpin and Glynda. The two of the rushed to the children with haste, ignoring the many officers that had attempted to taken their attention away.

The group of children stood motionless beneath their professor's harsh glare while Ozpin gazed up at the massive spikes of ice that rose from the crater before his eyes landed upon Jaune's own. Now words escaped their mouths but they both nodded in silent agreement as Glynda continued to berate her students before sighing and smiling sweetly.

"I'm just glad that you're all alright." said Glynda before straightening her glasses and using her trademark Goodwitch-Glare on them. "But be that as it may, you will all be serving a month of detention that moment you all return from your break, am I understood?" she asked, though her tone meant it as a command as her students all nodded her head. Nodding in silence, she walked to where Jaune and her employer stood, still watching the massive ice spike in silence while the children stood back in silent contemplation. "So, this is what has become of Roman?" she asked, thankful that Jaune had sent a live video feed of the incident to their scrolls.

"No. He's still alive. In the ice." said Jaune, looking up at the tips the shined in the sun's early glow before putting his hand against it's freezing side. "His Aura is till active...Almost as if this ice is just an extension of his body."

"Are you saying that this Ice is alive?" she asked, finding herself amazed and horrified over the implications.

"I believe the correct statement would be that the Dust within Roman's body was energized by his Aura but the resulting effect proved to be unstable and this was the aftermath." said Ozpin as Jaune pulled his hand away, clenching his teeth together. Ozpin placed his hand on his shoulder in solidarity. "I must apologize for what you've gone through, Mr. Arc."

"Sayuri did this...She's been experimenting on people, trying to merge them with Dust and turn them into her own private monsters." said Jaune, clenching his fists in anger.

"This shouldn't be possible." said Professor Goodwitch. "I know that it is possible to use the energy of Dust crystals to gain an increase in power and abilities but it should never be something of this scale."

"I think we're way beyond the realm of impossibilities." said Jaune, closing his eyes in an attempt to calm his rising anger. "I've known Sayuri for years and she'd never do something like unless it benefited her in some way. I also know that for all of her intelligence, this is beyond her realm of expertise."

"Then it's safe to assume that she's acquired an ally with access to technology capable of such feats." said Ozpin, sighing as Professor Goodwitch was pulled away by a VPD officer and a White Fang agent, leaving the two of them alone to stare at the ice spike.

The two of them stood in silence when the clacking of shoes brought their attention to Ruby Rose, who stood before them in front of the other students was silver eyes filled in curiosity. Jaune stepped forward, prepare to welcome her with open arms when her mouth split open and her next words stopped him dead in his tracks.

"Jaune, why did Roman call you Morito? And who is Sayuri?" she asked, causing Jaune to stare open eyed with mouth agape as his other friends joined at her sides.

And as he turned to face Ozpin's face, the slow nod of approval from the elderly man, he released a sigh and turned back to face his friends. "Do you kids have some time to listen to an old man ramble about his glory days?" he asked, smiling as they all stared at him with mixed feelings varying expressions. And as Yang would annoyingly say, it was looking to be that the cat was out of the proverbial bag.

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 **And there we have it! The last chapter of the Beacon Arc! And yes, this was the plan all along. I was always planning to have Jaune reveal his past to his friends just as I had always planned to have Roman be turned into a living Dust crystal through Sayuri's experimentation.**

 **But that only begs the question; What is Sayuri planning? Why is she turning people into living Dust crystals? And what will Jaune's friends think when they hear his story?**

 **Well, you'll have to come back on the last Sunday of September to find out when we start the next Arc.**

 **Coming soon...The Vacation Arc!**

 **Till next time!**


	22. A Long Awaited Explanation

**Greetings everyone!**

 **Welcome back to the long awaited 22nd chapter of "The Master Huntsman".**

 **So, I'll be real with all of you. Recently, I ended up having to get a new job as my previous one was going out of business. And as such it ended up throwing my whole update schedule out of wack. Due to this I ended up having to work numerous hours without much time for a break to learn the ropes and eventually figure out what I was going to do in terms of writing.**

 **Unfortunately, this began to have an adverse effect on my writing as each time I'd begin writing I'd want to stop because it was slowly feeling like a chore to continue doing so.** **It's why I've decided that I would instead work on a single chapter for each story that I'm working on and when I feel the time is right I would then update the story.**

 **Now, this does mean that I won't be updating every Sunday but I will TRY to update every OTHER Sunday. If this is problem for you well then I'm sorry but this is the only solution I can think of.** **And just in case you're wondering this will be the order of stories I'll be working on for the foreseeable future. So check them out if you want to get caught up.**

 **1\. The Knight & The Wizard.**

 **2\. Operation: Jaune's Dastardly Revenge.**

 **3\. The Master Huntsman.**

 **4\. Don't Mess With An Arc.**

 **5\. The Arcful Dodger.**

 **Also, some might ask now that we know about Pyrrha's mother and one of Jaune's older sisters will this mean that I'll be going back to fix everything and the answer will be no. I like where I took this story and I'll be keeping it that way.**

 **Make sure to Favorite, Follow, and leave a Review.**

 **Till next time!**

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Chapter Twenty-Two

How did it come to this?

How in all that was holy and good did someone that was once known as the infamous "Little Boy" end up being roped into going on a date with the likes of Yang Xiao Long? I'll tell you how by making a stupid promise to the one person he should've known would be the one to outright abuse it. Still to end up in his current situation was one thing. To end up in the same situation with the likes of Yang was another.

It had started out so simple in the beginning. After leaving the docks with Professor Ozpin and Professor Goodwitch, each of the students, including Jaune, were called into Vale's Police Department for questioning on exactly why it was they, a couple of first-years and a visiting student from Haven Academy, were fighting against the likes of the White Fang and Roman Torchwick. Needless to say none of the students confessed to the truth, least of all Blake, who was the one that roped everyone else into the altercation. Though it wasn't like it was all that hard to accomplish seeing as most of her friends were willing participants. All except for Jaune, who was already well into investigating the proceedings of the White Fang and Torchwick's string of robberies.

But what the former mercenary did not take into account was Roman Torchwick being another one of Sayuri's fanatics. Nor did he think Roman would willingly turn himself into a living Dust crystal just to win her favor. But the one thing he least expected to occur was his former identity as Morito Hayama to be brought to light, which in turn caused his partner, Ruby, to question Roman's words.

Suffice to say Jaune was not in a position where he could just disappear again as it only bring more misfortune upon himself. That and it wasn't like he had the luxury of doing so as now he had first hand information that his former master, Sayuri Hibachi, was somewhere in Vale and that meant that he'd be spending most, if not all, of his time searching for her and doing everything in his power to stop whatever progress she'd been making.

But first he had to explain to the others why it was Roman had chosen to refer to him by his former name. And so there they sat in the first-year dorm's common room. A room the was normally used by student in their free time but was instead being used by Jaune so that he could explain himself to his friends and allies. However while he wished to be able to tell his friends the truth he also knew that in doing so he'd simply be opening the door to a world of pain and misery that, in all honesty, they were too green to handle. It was why it pained him so much that he had to lie to them... But honestly it was the best for them even if they didn't realize it themselves. But someone had to be the adult in this situation and it might as well be him.

And so, there he stood before his friends, allies, and Weiss as he readied himself to explain.

Or at least he would if SOMEONE would stop trying to guess the answer. And by SOMEONE he meant Nora, who was STILL making guesses despite Jaune clearly stating that she didn't need to guess and that he was going to explain himself. Finally, thanks to Ren, Nora ceased her incessant guessing thus allowing Jaune to explain himself to the others.

"Okay, so, now that SOMEONE has finally stopped guessing completely unrelated answers to the current conversation..." said Jaune as he openly glared at a still smiling Nora.

"Heh, sorry!" she responded as she proceeded to wrap her arms around Ren's left arm.

"I can finally explain myself." said Jaune as he took a seat in the chair he placed previously behind himself. "A few years ago, when I first left Patch to explore the other kingdoms I had decided to use the pseudonym "Morito" as a way to hide my identity as well as prevent my name from becoming widespread. Last thing I needed was more publicity especially after the last fiasco." he said as flashes of his time spent running away from fangirls, challengers, and managers alike after defeating the once proud Mr. Satin. "But still, it appears that my attempts were not to my liking as Roman was already able to distinguish my physical appearance to my pseudonym. It also means that the person I was originally searching for now knows who I really am and what I look like."

At the sound of his words, it was then Ruby, whose curiosity was then peaked, who raised her hand in question. This in turn caused Jaune to smile at the sight of her as she continued to hold her hand up, waiting for him to reply to her awaiting question. Honestly, it reminded him so much about his old proteges that had him feeling nostalgic.

"Yes, Ruby?" he asked with a gentle smile as Ruby then lowered her arm.

"I thought you said you left Patch to go on a journey. Does this mean that was a lie too?" she asked with a saddened expression, which then caused Jaune to bite his tongue as he remembered that he had told him that he'd originally left on his so-called journey to gather strength when in reality he left to find Sayuri and establish connections and that the only reason he returned was because Vale was the only location he hadn't checked. Hell, he'd never even planned on attending Beacon Academy in the first place. He was only here because Ozpin had leverage over him and he was left with his hands tied. And now it was thanks to Ozpin, who he still did not trust, that he was now in another inescapable situation. One that he couldn't solve through his usual way of doing things.

That being just beating the hell out of everyone until they either submitted to him or they died trying.

"Yes, it was." he admitted, noticing the saddened expression Ruby now wore on her face while Yang's lilac eyes briefly flashed red. "And while it may not feel like it I want you to understand that I left to protect you."

"From who?" asked Blake as her black feline ears twitched about.

"From someone that needs to be stopped no matter the cost." he said before releasing a sigh as he mentally prepared himself for his next lie. "While I was still living on Patch I learned through some unsavory means that someone was attempting a mass takeover of every crime family throughout Remnant. And I couldn't just sit back knowing that if something were to happen to those I cared about and I did nothing to to stop it. And so, I left to search for them only for each lead I had to end in a dead end. That is until I learned about the White Fang and Roman Torchwick's involvement in several robberies. Originally, I'd thought that it was your ordinary criminal mischief but when I learned that they weren't stealing money but instead dust it piqued my curiosity enough that I returned to Vale to investigate. But now I know who is working behind the scenes and now I have to do everything I can to put their operation to an end. And in order to do that and keep you all safe from harm... I'm leaving Beacon Academy." he said with steely determination while the others all gained expressions of shock, confusion, and finally anger.

And none embodied that feeling of bloody rage than Yang Xiao Long, who's blonde hair was coated is bright wisps of fiery aura while her eyes burned brighter that the surface of the sun itself. Immediately, she marched over to where Jaune was sitting before reaching out with both hands to grip his collar, forcibly lifting him from the chair to meet her eyes. Her teeth clenched so tightly that they hurt but her anger-fueled adrenaline combined with her aura was preventing her from feeling anything other than a numb sensation. Millions of words ran through the buxom brawler's mind as she continued to glare directly through her childhood friend's head. But none of them were worth speaking when actions spoke louder than words.

And so, with a heart filled with fiery passion and a mind clouded by anger, Yang forcibly pressed her steaming lips against Jaune's own, pulling him closer towards her as his eyes widened to astronomical levels. All the while the others watched on with mixed emotions. For Ruby to see your own older sister kissing someone she often viewed as an older brother figure it was one of the most romantic and exiting things she ever witnessed but the likes of Pyrrha and Blake it was like igniting a fire in the pits of their stomachs and jealousy in the center of their hearts as they watched the scene before them play out.

After what may have an eternity, Yang pulled away from her heated kiss with the boy she'd always loved, though not without great reluctance, and stared into his eyes as he stared back in confusion. And though her cheeks were now redder than Ruby's cloak due to embarrassment, she knew that she wouldn't have taken that kiss back for all the Lien in the world.

"I already lost my mom." she said as she gripped Jaune's collar tighter, causing her knuckles to whiten. "I'm NOT losing you too. Do you hear me, Arc? You are staying right here where I can keep an eye on you and I don't care what you say about it." she said, releasing her hold on Jaune's collar just in time for Pyrrha to brush her to side as she took Yang's place and smashed her lips against Jaune's own, once again shocking not only himself but the others as well.

To the likes of Pyrrha, Jaune represented everything she'd striven to be. A kindhearted individual who wouldn't hesitate a second if it meant helping someone, even when they didn't want it. A fighter that never backed away from a challenge no matter how daunting it may be. A friend that would willing give their own life for the sake of another. It was these qualities and more that turned Pyrrha's once childhood crush into a love that bloomed fuller than any flower. And there was no way she was going to let anyone besides herself have him. And Jaune was once again left speechless as Pyrrha pulled away with a smile on her face.

"Jaune, you are the most incredible person I'd ever met. You're strong, kind, caring, and more than ever you are what I hope to become as a Huntress. But I can only do it so long as you're there at the end waiting for me." she said just as Blake popped into place, using her sudden presence to spook Pyrrha into releasing Jaune from her grip and thus allowing Blake to steal a kiss from the still-stunned former mercenary.

To Blake all she'd ever known was racism and bigotry from nearly every human she'd ever had the displeasure of meeting. And when she first met Jaune she felt that he would be no different. But as she spent time with him she'd slowly begun to realize that while there would always be humans that hated and abused those like herself so long as there were humans like Jaune then it meant that there was still hope for equality. And with the hope came a dream of a happy life filled with a litter of children, her little kittens, while she and Jaune would be happy to lead the world towards it's goal of achieving true equality. And it was because of him and his actions on that fateful night that the White Fang was the ideal organization that fought for peace. Not through violence or hate but through forgiveness and understanding. And it was because of him that she had become friends with Weiss, a person she'd originally thought would just like everyone else. Only for her to be the exact opposite of everything she originally thought to be. And though she knew she'd have to fight for a place in his heart she was willing to fight with all of her own to achieve her dream. After all, she was the one to steal his first kiss and everyone knew the rules of first come, first serve. This would be no different. And as she pulled away from the blonde-haired boy her yellow eyes sparkled like stars as she smiled at him.

"I don't have much words to say so I'll just say this and hope it convinces you to stay." she said before taking a breath. "You are the embodiment of everything good in this world. You give me strength to move through the darkness. You give me hope for a better tomorrow. And you give me love when no one else would. You are my everything and you will continue to be so so long as I decree it." she said as Weiss's left eyebrow raised at the sounds of her words.

"Did you just repeat a quote from that filthy smut you're always reading?" she asked with a disgusted expression as Blake's cheeks began to redden as Weiss revealed to practically everyone, including her own crush, that she read adult romance novels.

"I already told you, Weiss! Ninjas of Love is NOT smut!" she shouted at her childhood friend, who only rolled her eyes in response.

Suddenly, Jaune felt an immense weight on his back that then caused him to fall to the floor. Had he not stopped himself with his palms he may have fallen face first onto the hardwood floor. Twisting his head he found himself staring at both Ruby and Nora as they both clung onto his back with puffed out cheeks and angry expression that were more adorable than they were fearful.

"Ruby. Nora. Can you please get off of me?" he asked the two girls as both shook their heads as one.

"Nope!" they both shouted in unison, causing Jaune to release a sigh.

"If we let you go then you're just going to disappear again." said Ruby as she clung to her surrogate older brother's jacket.

"Yeah so from now on we're never letting you go, Jaune-Jaune!" Nora shouted her sentiments while Ren watched on in silence with a ghost smile.

"Ren can you please get Nora off of me?" Jaune asked as he watched Ren look at them before smiling in response to his fellow brother-in-arms's plea.

"Nope." he said with a smile, causing Jaune to release another sigh in response.

He should've known that this would be how they'd end up reacting to him leaving Beacon. But he couldn't blame them for acting as so. After all they were still kids who had no idea about the true hardships of the outside world. And while they too knew the same feeling of a fighting for their lives, thanks in part to the Grimm, they'd yet to see a battlefield first-hand. To hold their comrade in their arms as they laid dying due to a stupid mistake. They didn't know to what extent Jaune had faced in his previous life as Morito Hayama. All they knew was that someone close to them had just told them that he was preparing to leave them. Maybe for a few months or maybe forever. And they didn't want their bonds to be broken by anyone or anything. But then it was Ruby's next words that made Jaune realize something.

"You don't have to do this alone, Jaune." said Ruby, smiling innocently as Jaune listened to her words. "It doesn't matter what happens because we'll be there right beside you because you're someone we all care about."

And thought Ruby wouldn't realize what those words meant to someone like Jaune, it was because of those words that Jaune was able to remember a similar conversation he'd had with his master just hours before she mysterious disappeared and became his enemy. He'd made a promise to Sayuri many years ago that no matter what challenge or danger that came their way he'd be there to protect her from it. And now here he found himself in a similar moment only this time it was Ruby that was saying the very same words his younger self had spoken so many, many years ago. Seemingly, a smile grew itself on his lips as Jaune chuckled in response to Ruby's words, causing the little girl to become confused.

 _"Heh, I must be getting soft in my old age if a 15 year old girl is saying I need to be_ protected." he thought to himself as he pushed himself off of the floor with both Nora and Ruby still clinging onto his back. _"Geez, Sabine would be having a field day if she saw me being pushed around by a couple of brats right now."_

And as the others watched their friend, rival, and crush stand before them, completely forgetting that both Nora AND Ruby were still clinging onto his back, he instead smirked at them.

"So, you're all saying that you'll be there to stand by my side no matter what comes." he said with a smirk as he noticed that very same fiery determination he'd seen in the eyes of every student at Mikado High. "What if we're outgunned?" he asked as Yang stepped forward with a pump of her right fist.

"Then we'll just have to beat them with our bare hands." she said with a smile.

"And what if we're outmanned?" he asked again as Weiss stepped forward with a prideful expression.

"I'm quite sure that the likes of some White Fang grunts will be of no match for the likes of us." she said, causing Jaune to smirk at her response.

"And what we're shit out of luck?" he asked as both Nora and Ruby shouted their response in unison.

"Then we'll just make our own luck!" they shouted, causing the others to shout in agreement.

And all the while Jaune watched them as he saw the ever brief ghosts of his former students and proteges standing beside his friends, all with a proud smile on their faces. But it's true... As far as they were concerned they were outgunned, outmanned, and up shit's creek without a damn boat. But maybe... Just maybe... they had a chance to achieve what Morito had failed to do so many years ago. Maybe he could finally make his former master see the error of her ways and together they would finally be able rest their weary bones.

"Alright then, since you're all prepared to fight till the bitter end then that means we've got some training to do. I hope you're all ready for it kiddos." said Jaune was his expression took on a darker meaning when suddenly he felt a hand on his shoulder, causing him to turn and see a smirking Yang.

"Not so fast there, Noodle Boy." she said with a smirk. "You still owe me for lying about leaving Patch. And luckily for you I know exactly how you can make it up to me." she said with a smirk.

And several hours later now Jaune sitting in a booth drinking a Strawberry Sunrise while Yang kept herself busy on the dance floor. Though judging by the sight of flying bouncers and gang members with guns followed by screams and explosions Jaune had a feeling that Yang was spending time doing less dancing and more... well... being Yang. Oh well, he'd let her have this night of freedom because come next week when they were all let out for vacation before the next semester began they would all soon see that Hell didn't come in the form of fire and brimstone. But in the form of the very same hellish training regiment he forced his former proteges to perform after they lost to a couple of kids.

It was time these kids understood that Hell came in the form of "The Morito Squad Special Training."


	23. The First Day of Hell, Part One

**Greetings everyone,**

 **Welcome back to the 23rd chapter of "The Master Huntsman".**

 **Thank you all so much for reading along with us and no, I will never stop thanking all of you for reading because I know that without all of you none of this would be possible for someone like me.**

 **Don't forget to check out my other stories if you want to get caught up.**

 **1\. The Knight The Wizard (A/N: Because Vol. 6 is over, giving way for Gen: LOCK, that also means that this story will be going on hiatus after one or more chapters so be sure to check it out before it does.)**

 **2\. Operation: Jaune's Dastardly Revenge (A/N: The same can also be said for this story because it, too, is nearing it's end so be sure to give it a read.)**

 **3\. The Master Huntsman**

 **4\. The Arcful Dodger**

 **5\. A Bright Future (A/N: Set to release later on into the year.)**

 **Make sure to Favorite, Follow, and leave a Review.**

 **Till next time!**

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Chapter Twenty-Three

Some would say Hell is all fire and brimstone where the sinners of the Overworld are tormented for their misdeeds for all of eternity. Others would claim that Hell is having live with others that know your deepest, darkest secrets. But for those that once trained underneath the legendary baby-faced master mercenary, Morito Hayama, the training he'd often forced them to undertake was worse than all forms of Hell merged together. And now, in order to gain the strength required to fight alongside their friend and crush, the members of Team JYPR and Team RNBW were about to embark on their most dangerous mission yet.

Their goal... Survive Jaune's hellish training camp.

In order to accomplish such a task, Jaune Arc was using the time they had off from Beacon Academy so that he may properly train these brats into proper soldier befitting the heart and spirit of a Mikado High graduate. And the only way to achieve this goal was to invite all of his friends to a remote island just off the coast of Mistral. The island wasn't much to look at but considering he'd found it after his Bullhead was ambushed by a flock of Nevermore while he was first beginning his journey it did make for a very appropriate vacation spot. In all honesty, it actually reminded him of the last time he'd brought his former proteges to experience their last hellish training camp with him. Ah, what fond memories, you know besides the fact that he'd nearly killed them all after losing his memories but that was a story for another time. The point was, after he'd discovered the uninhabited island he was then able to properly utilize it's natural surrounding to build what he considered to be the new and improved Morito Island.

The island was fit with a rustic cabin tha could house a total of twelve people, wireless connection to the CCTV, an action he was quite thankful for the last time he'd been in Atlas, and of course who could possibly ignore the mile long obstacle course he'd designed for his future training sessions. And truth be told he was damn proud of what he'd built. And judging by the expressions of shock and awe on his friends he could only assume that they thought the same too.

And so, here the were on Morito Island to experience their first day of Hell.

Oh, he was going to so much fun training them.

After all, the only way to build someone up was to first break them down.

And that was exactly what Jaune Arc was going to do for the next three weeks of their vacation.

"Alright, maggots!" shouted Jaune, shocking everyone out of their blank states as they all turned to see him dressed in a black sleeveless shirt, dark green camo pants, brown combat boots, and a silver whistle tied around his neck. "Welcome to your first day of hell!" he shouted again until he then spotted little Ruby with her arm raised above her head, causing him to release a sigh as he took off his HUD glasses to look at her properly. "Yes, Ruby?" he asked.

"Uh, Jaune, I thought we were going to be training." she said as Jaune nodded his head in silence. "So, then why did we have to come here when we could've done it back at Beacon?" she asked.

"Because Beacon doesn't have the necessary equipment or faculty experience required to properly whip you maggots into proper shape." he said as he slowly began to pace in front of them. "I've brought you all to this island so that you may be molded into the very model of a proper warrior."

"Excuse me, but how is Beacon Academy, one of the most illustrious Huntsmen academies ever known, NOT fit enough to mold us into proper Huntsmen and Huntresses?" demanded Weiss, crossing her arms as she sent a heated glare towards Jaune, who merely shrugged off her glare.

"For one thing Beacon Academy has caused many of you to mistakenly believe that you're invincible." he replied, causing the others to all turn and look at one another in confusion.

"How so?" asked Blake, her feline ears twitching as the gentle breeze brushed against her furry ears.

"Aura." Jaune replied as he willed his Aura to activate, causing his right hand and forearm to glow with a white outline. "Aura has become a crutch for all of you. It's tricked you into believing that so long as it's active then nothing could possibly harm you. Well it's time we fixed that problem before it ends up becoming a detriment to your survival." said Jaune as he slowly stepped before each of them, grasping their wrists to place a set of futuristic locks on them. "These are Aura Bracers. They're specifically designed to suppress the Auras of dangerous criminals. In essence this means that your Aura levels will be suppressed to the point where even a punch from Ruby will have you in the red. This also means that any access to your Semblances will be little more than trying grasp at straws. They were also designed by my older sister, Dr. Verde Arc. You will all be wearing these for the remainder of your stay. And from now on the only way you're getting those off is through blood, sweat, and tears. Though mostly blood. Other times I will be having one-on-one sessions with each and everyone of you so that we can tackle the problems that each of you have been facing." said Jaune, finishing his statement just as Yang threw her hand up into the air. "Yes, Yang?"

"So, what kind of one-on-one sessions are we talking about here?" she asked with a saucy smirk and a twinkle in her eye that instantly reminded Jaune that he now had to deal with multiple girls all pinning for his attention.

"The sparring and teaching kind." he replied with a stern expression before it slowly changed into a thoughtful one. Deep down he knew he needed to answer their heartfelt confessions and there was a part of himself, mainly the teenage boy part, that wanted to accept their feelings but while physically he was the same age as them mentally he was still that of a grown man. So needless to say it wasn't like his predicament was all that easy to solve. He needed to wrap his head around this first then and only then could he properly answer them. "Either way, we have three weeks until the start of Beacon's second semester. So for your first day you're mission is complete this obstacle course before dusk. Those that complete it without cheating will be welcomed into the cabin."

"And those that don't?" asked Ren, causing the others to all gain a troubled expression.

"Those that don't will have to fend for themselves until morning." said Jaune, smirking evilly as memories of forcing Zabine to undergo such a hellosh training flashed in his mind. "Now, sound off once I've called upon you!" shouted Jaune as he pulled out a small notepad with the list of his friends names. "Weiss Schnee!" he shouted before setting his eyes of Weiss as she proudly raised her hand.

"Present!" she exclaimed with a proud smile. "And might I say it's such an honor to learn from someone like you."

Suddenly, a cough echoed out from the far left. One that did very little to mask the insult that came from Yang's mouth. "Kiss ass."

And her answer to such an insult was a heated glare from Weiss and a smack to the head from Jaune's notepad that then caused the blonde to grasp her hand with her hands as she winced from the pain. Her eyes widened as she now truly realized that now she effectively had no Aura that could tank the damage for her. And thus instead of barely feeling Jaune's notepad like she usually did thanks to her Aura, now she felt the full brunt of the hit and man did it hurt!

"Next, Pyrrha Nikos!" shouted Jaune as Pyrrha lifted her hand to her shoulder with a smile.

"Here!" she exclaimed with a smile before lowering her hand as Jaune nodded in her direction before moving to the next name.

"Blake Belladonna!" he shouted, causing Blake's ears to twitch at the sound of her name.

"Here." she said softly with a small smile, silently thanking the Gods that she wasn't born with a tail otherwise it'd be a dead giveaway of just how happy she was to hear her crush say her name.

"Lie Ren!" shouted Jaune as his eyesight locked onto Ren's slightly raised hand.

"Here..." he said in a tired drone just before he moved his hand towards his mouth, preventing the yawn he'd then made to escape from his mouth. It was clear that sitting next to Nora on a 12 hour flight was not a good start to his day.

"Nor-" Jaune began to say only for the one that he was going to call on to suddenly appear with a wide grin and sparkling eyes that just shouted mischief.

"HERE I AM!!" shouted the girlish hammer wielder as she popped up from behind Jaune, immediately sending his instincts for a whirl as he reacted to her presence. His hand latched onto the collar of her shirt and her right arm before making an upward sweeping motion with his left foot. And with the grace of a sack of potatoes the ginger-haired girl quickly flopped onto her back all the while still wearing that carefree smile on her face.

"Goddamnit! Nora! I thought I told you to stop doing that!" shouted Jaune, releasing a sigh as he then listened to the telltale giggle from Nora, herself. It was the kind of giggle that told him that even if she understood what he'd said it didn't mean that she would agree to it.

Honestly, it was damn amazing how similar this powerhouse was to another certain hyperactive knucklehead he'd once known. Hell, they were so eerily similar that it often threw the ex-mercenary for a loop sometimes. Least he could thankful that Nora didn't use to be a guy and that she was already pinning after someone else. Now, he didn't have a problem with Diego transitioning into a woman, in fact he was quite proud of their bravery. But for now it was time he turned his attention onto the present hyperactive knucklehead that was still laying on the ground with a dumb grin on her face.

"Nora, don't ever do that again." he commanded before rolling his eyes at her poor attempt at a salute as she then leaped back onto her feet before moving back beside Ren.

"Yessiree, Fearless Leader!" Nora exclaimed, causing Ren to sigh at her antics as he slowly brought his right palm to his face.

"Alright." said Jaune as he glanced back down at his notepad to see Ruby's name. "Ruby Rose!"

But in return for his call he instead was offered silence, causing the former mercenary to glance upward to see said red-hooded girl was staring at the Aura Bracers on her wrists with wide-eyes fascination. It was in that moment that Jaune brought his hand to his head as a sigh just barely escaped between his lips. He knew that expression all too well after having seen it multiple time throughout the years.

Ruby was in her trademarked "Weapons Otaku Mode".

"Ruby." he repeated only for more silence to greet his call as she continued to fiddle with the Bracers on her wrists. "Ruby." he repeated once again with a stern tone of voice. But still he receives no reply from the girl. "RUBY!" he shouted, finally shocking Ruby out of her trance as she jumped in place at the force of Jaune's about.

The girl stood at a standstill as she glanced at the area surrounding her until her silver eyes saw that all of her friends were now staring at her with the same expression. The very same expression that often told her that she'd done it once again. Her cheeks reddened as reality began to set it as she began to fiddle with her thumbs with an embarrassed smile.

"Heh, I... Uh, I did it again, didn't I?" she asked as Jaune rolled his eyes with a sigh that made her feel stupid. That is until she felt his firm but gentle hand rest upon her shoulder, causing her to look up into her cerulean blue eyes.

"It's alright, Ruby." he said, removing his hand from her shoulder. "Like I said before, it's one of your best qualities."

Immediately, her silver eyes widened as he smiled down at her before he then moved onto Yang, who was standing next to her with a strange glint in her lilac eyes. Meanwhile her own imagination was running wild with ideas, all of them centered around Jaune. her heart pounded in her chest as millions upon millions of fluttering butterflies flew into a tornado in the pit of her stomach. And in truth, she hated these feelings. She hated them because she knew what they meant. She hated them because she knew who they were meant for. And she hated them even more because she knew that she could never ever act upon them. These feelings weren't meant for him nor were they meant to flourish. And so, she kept them bottled up in hopes that they'd one day vanish into thin air. But she knew the truth. That they'd never vanish so long as the one she liked stood before her. The one that had always been there for her. Her knight in shining armor.

"And lastly, Yang Xiao Long!" shouted Jaune, his irritation already boiling over as he spotted that same mischievous glint in her eyes

"Sup!" shouted Yang, smirking as she eyeballed her competition. She knew that if she ever wanted a chance to win her crush's heart she need to first prove that she was more worthy of it. And she knew exactly how to prove that as a devious idea entered her mind. "Hey! How's about we make this a bit more interesting, huh?" she asked with a competitive smirk, causing Jaune to raise a single eyebrow in question. Taking his silence as a sign, Yang then took a step forward and turned to look upon her rivals in love. "Let's have another competition to see who gets to spend an entire day with Jaune when we get back to Vale." she said, her words already having an immediate effect on the others as they started to envision their day with Jaune.

Meanwhile, the former mercenary as slowly shaking his head at the sound of Yang's idiotic deal. There was absolutely no way any of them would ever agree to this deal.

"DEAL!!!" shouted several of the girls, sans Ren, who was still too tired to do much of anything.

Then again maybe not...

Either way, it was looking like the competition for a place in Jaune's heart was still ongoing. And now it was time to start the second round. Whoever won first place before dusk was guaranteed to have the best shot at winning his heart. And the only wall standing between them and his love was a mile long wooden obstacle course.

Little did they know was that this obstacle course was designed by the Drill Sergeany of Hell, himself. And he was going to enjoy ever second of their pain.

Slowly, Jaune raised his right arm into the air. In his grasp was a small silver flare gun. And with a pull of the trigger the gun launched a bright glowing ball of light signaling both start of the competition and the start of their first day of Hell.


	24. The First Day of Hell, Part Two

**Greetings everyone,**

 **Welcome back to the 24th chapter of "The Master Huntsman".**

 **Thanks again to everyone who's been following this story. I'm really glad I started writing because now I can see just why some people enjoy it so much.**

 **Be sure to check out my other stories, such as; "The Knight The Wizard", which will be reaching it's mid-way conclusion before going on a temporary hiatus until the release of Volume 7, and "Operation: Jaune's Dastardly Revenge", which will be reaching it's final conclusion in it's next chapter. So be sure to check them out before they end.**

 **Make sure to Favorite, Follow, and leave a Review.**

 **Till next time!**

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Chapter Twenty-Four

This was it.

The moment they'd all been waiting for.

The starting gun had been fired.

And the race for a date with Jaune Arc had begun.

Leading the charge as she rapidly scaled the wooden rock wall was the raven-haired feline beauty, Blake Belladonna. Following closely behind was the champion of victory, Pyrrha Nikos, who was using her intense grip on the footholds to move up the massive obstacle. Behan the champion of the hyperactive thunder-girl, Nora Valkyrie, who wore a permanent smile on her face was climbed after the two leads. Lagging behind was of course her trusty squire, Lie Ren, whose agility and calmness under pressure helped to relieve some of his mental stress. Next came Yang Xiao Long, whose red eyes burned with a competitive fire as she climbed the wall of wood. And, of course, following in her older sibling's footsteps was the red hood herself, Ruby Rose, whose determination to win fueled her past her body's limits as she climbed the wall. And following in dead last as she still struggled to climb the first few feet was none other than the snow-haired heiress, Weiss Schnee.

Jaune sighed at the utterly pathetic sight of Weiss trying desperately to climb the wooden rock wall. Hell, even Ruby felt saddened by the sight of her partner struggling to climb the wall. Unfortunately, the boisterous Yang took immense pleasure in her otherwise arrogant teammate's struggle as the sound of her obnoxious laughter echoed from above.

"Looks like Weiss Cream isn't as great as she thinks she is!" laughed Yang as she continued to climb the wall, ignoring the heated glare said girl was giving her.

"Just wait till I get up there, Xiao Long!" Weiss angrily shouted back, feeding into Yang's arrogance as the buxom blonde laughed once more.

"How's about you try saying that when you actually get your feet off the ground!?" Yang shouted back, laughing all the way to the top before disappearing over the edge.

Ruby, who was also nearing the top took one last glance down at her partner with a frown on her face. But just as she was about to move back down to help her the high-pitched whistle from Jaune mouth immediately put her idea to a screeching halt.

"Keep it moving, Ruby!" commanded Jaune. "If Weiss can't make it up this wall on her own then she has no business becoming a Huntress!"

And it was Jaune's words that became the final straw for Weiss as she immediately released her grip from the wall and began to walk away from the wall. Neither Jaune nor Weiss spoke to one another as the snow-haired heiress walked past him and into the jungle. Ruby watched from atop the wooden rock wall as her partner disappeared from view. Her silver eyes drifted down to Jaune, who continued to stand where he was. His posture made it clear that he was not going to go after Weiss nor was he going to allow her to go after Weiss either. And so, with nothing else to do, Ruby continued down the obstacle course. All the while her thoughts of Weiss continued to plague her mind.

But Ruby wasn't the only one being plagued with thoughts of the snowy heiress as Jaune, too, was making subtle glances towards the jungle where Weiss had entered. A soft sigh escaped between his lips as he ran a hand through his blonde hair. He made sure that his HUD glasses kept a constant connection to his friends' individual scrolls. At least this way he could locate Weiss and be sure that she wasn't in any danger should he need to find her. Still, he was right when he said that this training would benefit each and everyone of them. He knew that Weiss was downright worthless without her weapon or her Semblance. He also knew that this training would make or break Weiss as well. But even if a part of him wanted to go after her and motivate her to continue trying. Ultimately, it was up to Weiss to decide whether or not she wanted to continue. But she first needed to do something about that pride of her's lest it becomes her downfall. And the last thing he wanted to see was another person with melted wings fall to their death. So instead he stood his ground and kept a watchful eye on his friends as they ran the course.

Meanwhile Weiss was continuing to traverse the jungle with a sour expression. Her hands clenched tightly into balled-up fists as she stomped through the jungle. She hated this. Hated wearing these cuffs that prevented her from using her Aura to enhance her strength and endurance. Hated Jaune for saying that she didn't deserve to be a Huntress. What did it matter if she relied on her Aura, her Semblance, or her weapon if at the end of the day she was still alive to continue doing so? What was the point in training at all? To fight this mysterious Sayuri and stop her from destroying all of Vale? For she knew, Jaune could've been lying to them all!

Raging emotions continued to fuel Weiss's body as she continued to walk aimlessly into the jungle until she came upon a pond poised directly before a waterfall. Her anger vanished as she stared at the beautiful sight before her. No words were needed as she walked towards the pool before staring down into the reflection of herself. The sight of her scar filled her with sadness as she gently stroked it with her hands.

It was a strange sensation.

To feel both proud and disgusted at her scar.

On one hand it was a medal of honor that showed just how far she was willing to go to reach her goals. While on the other hand it became a blemish on her perfect record. Had she'd been better prepared for her bout then this scar that welcomed her each and every morning would never have appeared. She knew her sister, Winter, would've never had made a mistake like she had. In her eyes her older sister was the very model of perfection. Beautiful, smart, strong, and determined to do whatever it took to reach her dreams. Even if it meant leaving everything she once held dear behind. Winter was everything Weiss wanted to be. And everything she knew she wasn't.

Silently, Weiss sat upon the soft green grass as she pulled her legs close to her chest. Her cool blue eyes continuing to stare into the pond as the chirps of exotic birds echoed in the distance. The wind's warm gentle breeze brushed against her smooth pale skin as she sat amongst the jungle trees. The sound of the water's fall became like a musical melody as she took in a breath. And with the musical accompaniment of nature the heiress's wall that housed her frozen heart proceeded to melt as she begun to sing.

Though she spoke no words, her soft spoken notes were somber and filled with sorrow and regret. And even as the wind began to caress her snow-colored hair, she continued to sing her wordless melody. Her heart ached as she poured her soul into her song.

And much like her scar, she thought it strange that she enjoyed singing so much and at the same time, despised it with every fiber of her very being.

Perhaps it was because in the beginning it was singing that made her mother and father smile. And not the same fake smiles they'd often wear to hide heir true feelings. But true smiles that they'd once worn. But after her father's true desires came to light those smiles died and yet she continued to sing. She sung and sung until her throat became dry and her lungs burned. But she continued to sing in hopes that one day, just one day, she'd be able to see those smiles once again.

But as she grew older, her songs that had once brightened her days became somber and filled with sorrow, much like the song she was singing now. It wasn't until she reached her years as a teen that she'd begun to realize the truth. That, though she was once a joyful bird, free to soar amongst the clouds, singing her beautiful songs for all to hear. But now she was nothing but a caged bird, forced to sing for the whims of others when they deemed it fit.

And even when she did so did she receive a reward? No. Instead she received more demands. Her songs were never enough for them. What was once a vibrant and happy girl soon became a cold and unfeeling existence.

But then, one day, it had all changed. The man that had placed her into a cage and forced her to sing for scraps was no more. His lies were surfaced and as a result he was dethroned by the very wife he'd forced into marriage. Her new owner opened her cage but, still, she was too frightened to leave. But her new owner did what her previous one never did.

She left the cage door open.

It'd taken weeks for her to gather the courage to take even a few steps towards the open door. But with some help from a rather stubborn black cat, she'd finally broken free from the cage that kept her down for so long.

And she, a songbird that's been caged for so long, began to slowly re-learn what it meant to be free once more.

And it was on that day when she took her first flight from that cage that she and the stubborn black cat became friends.

It wouldn't be until months later that she learned from her owner that it was a black panther that brought her tormentor's crimes to light. But even when she gave her thanks to the famed panther he instead pushed her thanks onto another. A boy that had showed him that there was still hope for the world. And that it was because of that boy that his dream for a better world for all who lived in it slowly started to become real.

It was on that day that she made a decision for herself. She'd find the one who freed her from her cage and sing them the most beautiful song her heart could muster. And that even if her throat became drier than a desert, her lungs burned hotter than a thousand suns, and her final words became her very last, she'd still sing for him. And she'd be happy to do it all.

Because she was free.

It didn't matter what stood in her way. Be they Grimm, bandits, even the very world itself. She'd brave the harshest storms. Tame the wildest seas. And fight even on her dying breath.

Because she was free.

It was in that moment that Weiss's song came to a triumphant end. What had started soft and somber was now strong and full of energy. The heiress rose to her feet, her hand softly tracing over her scar as her once frozen heart burned with an intense determined fire. Her goal was clear and she'd stop at nothing to achieve it.

Because she was free.

With steely determination she turned on her heel and began to march back through the jungle. Her body ached without her aura to assist her. But still she continued onward towards her goal. She'd fight past the pain, past the sorrow, and past her limitations.

Because she was free.

She was no longer that poor caged bird that sung for worthless scraps. She was a songbird proud and strong. She was more than somebody's pet. She was more than just an heiress. She was more than a name.

She was Weiss Schnee and she was free.

And it was Weiss Schnee who broke through the tree line and set her eyesight upon the 10 foot tall wooden rock wall that had tricked her into doubting herself. She marched through the grass that soon changed to sand towards the wall. She moved past Jaune, whose words now rung within her head. He was right as always. If she was to become a Huntress then she must be stronger, faster, smarter than ever before.

No longer would she be that caged little songbird. And no longer would she allow anyone to face that pain alone. She would face this wall and all other obstacles that stood before her with her head held high and her heart burning with an eternal fire.

Without another word, Weiss placed hand onto a foothold and tilted her head up to look upon the wall's top. Her eyes widened at the sight of her friends all standing atop the wall. Each of them had a smile on their faces. They were not here to laugh at her misery, well, maybe except for Yang. They were here to cheer her on.

"What are you waiting for, Snow Angel?" asked Jaune, smirking at the heiress, who had turned her head to look upon him. "Don't tell me, you're calling it quits now?"

Though his words may sound harsh to an outsider, to Weiss's ears they were words that fueled her determination past its limits. They were not the form of an insult but of a question.

Would she quit and remain a somber songbird locked in a cage or would she break from her bondage and finally fly free?

To her, the answer could never have been more clear.

With a smirk filled with pride she looked upon the blonde-haired boy with determined eyes. "Hmph, as if you have to ask."

And it was as Weiss began climbing up the wood rock wall, her muscles tensed with effort and her determination flowing through her very being that Jaune saw a familiar spirit in the young heiress.

It was crazy just how similar she and Gisele were with one another. Both belonged to esteemed families. Both felt as if they needed to be perfect in everything they did. Both living in the shadows of a better sibling. And both trapped in a cage of their own fears and doubts.

And now here he was, watching them break free from their cage. And even as Weiss stood atop the rock wall with her friends gathered around her with happy expressions and cheers that echoed through the sky above, Jaune's smile never left his face.

It was there first day of Hell and together they faced it with a smile on their faces and hearts burning with determination. But this was just the first wall they'd have to face in their journey.

Luckily, or rather unluckily, depending on who you might ask, they had a stubborn former master rank to guide them.

"Hey!" shouted Jaune, stopping his friends' cheers for their resident ice queen as they all turned to look down upon them. "Unless you're all fine with foraging for food in the dark then I'd suggest you get your asses in gear! We'ver got three weeks to whip you maggots into proper shape and you better believe me when I say I plan on working you down to the bone! Now get!" he shouted, his voice booming through the area as his friends and allies restarted their race through the gauntlet, each one with a goal in mind.

Needless to say, their first day of Hell would not be their last. And Jaune Arc was excited to see just how far they'd all come in a week's time.


	25. Return To Beacon Academy, Part One

**Greetings everyone,**

 **Welcome back to the official amalgamation of Chapters 25, 26, 27 of "The Master Huntsman".**

 **So, first allow me to give my thanks to everyone who has been so understanding of why I had to do what I did in order to keep my passion for writing alive. It was a tough decision but in the end I still believe that it was for the best and regardless of how much a pain it was to get to this point it's something that had to happen in order for me to see my limit.**

 **As a result... TIME SKIP! I LITERALLY couldn't write this chapter to save my life and thus I just decided to say "fuck it" and do another time skip so I can just get this show back on the road. I am too tired from working multiple sleepless nights due to this merger and I swear if I have to deal with another idiotic customer who, for some Herculean leap in logic, thinks that I, a damn desk jockey, can fix a problem that THEY caused I WILL go on a murderous rampage.**

 **If anyone has a problem with me doing a time skip well then suck it up and deal with it.**

 **I decided to re-read "Gun X Clover" so that I can re-learn why I loved Morito's character and I will incorporating more of his original personality instead of slowly changing him into Jaune. Even though I like Jaune as a character, in the end I still prefer the sadistic child-like master rank to the tall, blonde, and scraggly.**

 **Nevertheless, this chapter has been very time consuming and life always finds a way to mess with whatever little free time I somehow manage to obtain.**

 **In other news, I've decided that I'll be taking a break from writing after I release the next chapter of my other story, "The Arcful Dodger". I won't be gone for long but with the way work has been going and how swamped we are with this merger, I just can't find the time to write and when I do I end up getting writer's block because of all the stress. So, I'll be taking the entire month of April off after which I will be keeping this story on hold while I work on "The Arcful Dodger" the third entry in my Operation Series, "Operation: Jaune's Future Fiancée".**

 **Anyway, make sure to Favorite, Follow, and leave a Review.**

 **Till next time.**

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Chapter Twenty-Five (Rewrite)

It had been a harsh few weeks since Jaune took his teammates to the island to train in preparation for his master, Sayuri's, attack. But through all the pain, they all persevered and came out on top. Hell, he'd go so far as to say that they far exceeded his expectations of what he thought they were all capable of. Ruby quickly proved to be an excellent tactician when it came to combat and her ability to come up with battle tactics on the fly were second to none. He'd also managed to teach her a style of martial arts that capitalized on her short stature and agile nature that she could use should she ever find herself without her weapon. Though the odds of this occurring were small, at best, it was better to have it and not need than to need it and not have it. He'd also done the same for Weiss, though the style of martial arts he'd chosen for her was more or less a combative version of pressure point pushing, mainly due to her keen perception to find chinks in an opponent's armor. With Ren, he decided to teach him the very same technique he'd taught Saalim when he lost the use of his eyes but still wanted to fight on the frontlines alongside his comrades in the rebellion, the Echo-Location Skill, or E-L-S. The skill wasn't much to scoff at but when in the possession of one who can best utilize it's true purpose, it's a force to be reckoned with. As for the enigma that was Nora Valkyrie, Jaune figured the best way to help someone that uses the tried and true method of beating the hell out of someone with a giant hammer was to play to their strengths. And thus Jaune, with the assistance of his older sister, Verde, he created the Thunder Bands, a set of wrist cuffs that utilized Lightning-based Dust to essentially power up Nora's Semblance, thus granting her a seemingly endless pool to enhance her already-monstrous strength.

May God have mercy on Ren's soul the night he and Nora get... BUSY.

Of course, he also made sure teach Yang, who had repeatedly made his days on that island a living hell through the use of her "assets". But then again she wasn't the only female that was pinning for his heart. Both Pyrrha and Blake had also taken considerable measures to ensure that the former mercenary's time on that island was... Let's say SPIRITUALLY taxing.

But as much as Jaune wanted to admit that he held out, unfortunately, he soon began to realize that unlike his previous life as Morito Hayama, the life of Jaune Arc was one that he could use to better himself. And so, at the end of the day, he, a grown man, was now dating three girls at the same time. Of course, he made absolutely sure that they all knew that under no circumstances would they, as Yang would put it, "do the horizontal tango". He may have relented to their feelings and agreed to be with them but that did NOT mean that he was going to become a lolicon. He didn't care if he was physically that of a teenage boy, he was still that of a man in his 40s and that was reason enough to not try anything with any of them.

Or at least that how it should be if not for the fact that Yang had apparently made it her mission to try to break his resolve.

And unfortunately for her, Jaune had literally YEARS of dealing with hormornal teenagers and he swiftly made sure that she and the others knew that when Jaune Arc made a promise then he was goddamned sure that he would keep it no matter what.

Plus the last thing he wanted to deal with was several angry papa bears wanted to end his life. He already had enough on his plate as is.

Regardless, they were all just about to disembark from the transport ship that brought them all back to Beacon when Jaune noticed that both Ozpin and Glynda were standing just outside on the tarmac.

As the door's opened and the group made their way off of the ship, Jaune's eyes immediately landed on Ozpin, who had begun to walk towards them with Glynda in tow.

"Welcome back, Teams RNBW and JYPR." said Ozpin with a smile as he held his coffee mug in his right hand and his cane in the other. "I trust that you all had an enjoyable break?" he asked, causing Jaune to smirk as the looks on all of his f fiends shifted from happy to downright terrified. They looked as if they'd just been through hell.

And considering who it was that decided to train them during the break, it didn't take a genius to figure out why.

But before anyone could answer the headmaster's question, the sound of the academy's bell rang across the way, most likely as a testing of the school's basic systems before the students came back from their vacations.

"I believe I've kept you all waiting long enough. Please, return to your dorms and unpack. In the meantime, Mr. Arc, may I have a word with you in my office?" asked Ozpin, his eyes trained on Jaune, who looked back to see the questioning expressions on his friends' faces before he nodded in silence, signaling to them that he would be okay without them.

As soon as the others were out of earshot, the three individuals made their way back to Ozpin's office where Jaune took a seat in front of Ozpin's desk while Glynda stood off to the side with a clipboard in hand.

"What is that you wanted to talk about, Ozpin?" asked Jaune, when Ozpin suddenly placed a small manila envelope down in front of him. After looking at it for a quick second, the former mercenary opened the envelope and pulled out a series of papers, each one with varying degree of medical and scientific data and all of it involving Roman Torchwick. "What is this?" he asked, looking back up from the papers.

"After what happened with Mr. Torchwick at the docks, I had General Ironwood send a team of researchers to collect data and what they've found raised some concerns." said Ozpin as he turned his head to look out his window to sea the peak of the same gigantic Dust crystal that housed Roman's body. "It appears that what Mr. Torchwick was not the first to undergo this "Dust Infusion" experiment as we've found numerous cases of other individuals that experienced the same result, albeit to lesser degrees. But what made it worse was that each of them had said the same thing before they were encased in what we're now calling their "cocoons"." said Ozpin, turning back to look at Jaune with serious expression. ""That she would bring about the truth of the world"."

"The truth?" asked Jaune as he looked back down at the papers in his hands before looking back up. "Could she be referring to the Maidens and the Relics?"

"As of yet, we have no answers." said Glynda as she looked at the young mercenary. "Our best hypothesis is that Ms. Hibachi is planning on acquiring the power of the Maidens for herself. How she will go about it is beyond our knowledge. It is why we have taken measures to ensure that Amber, the current Fall Maiden, is moved to a secure location in Atlas, where General Ironwood and his team will keep watch over her."

"Any idea on when she'll be moved?" asked Jaune as he placed the papers back on the desk.

"We plan on moving Ms. Autumn after the Vytal Festival. She'll be transferred to Atlas under the guise of technical equipment brought here by the Atlesian Military. But until then, we plan on keeping a watchful eye over Ms. Autumn twenty-fours/seven. While we are doing this, we will be leaving on site detail to you and your team. You are notify us of any suspicious activity no matter how minuscule, do you understand Mr. Hayama?" asked Ozpin.

"Understood." he replied.

"And one more thing, Mr. Hayama." said Ozpin as Glynda looked down at her tablet-scroll with a scowl. "Have you thought more about our... Discussion at all?"

"I have and I believe I already gave you my answer, Ozpin." said Jaune as he glared at the bespectacled man sitting in front of him, his blue eyes now replaced by red as he activated his semblance in a show of intimidation when suddenly the two men's glaring contest was ended by a loud exhausted sigh from Glynda, causing the two men to look back at her as she turned her own glare away from her tablet.

"What is it, Glynda?" asked Ozpin as Glynda slowly began to make her way towards the elevator. "It appears that I have some troublemakers to deal with... Again." she said as Jaune's mind flashedback to the time his parents had left Glynda in charged of his seven older sisters.

"Those idiots better pray that they're not the problem." said Jaune as he and Ozpin both followed after Glynda's retreating form as she made her way towards the academy's mess hall.

And as the three of them made their way towards the mess hall, a loud crash took the three's attention away from the entrance as a familiar blonde-haired girl crashed through the roof of the mess hall before rocketing upwards several hundred feet in the air. Seeing this, Jaune immediately activated his semblance, causing his blonde hair to shift to bleached white, his blues to red, his pale white skin to darken, and several dark red marking to appear on his body. The marking then began to twist and move around his body before jutting outward from his back and taking the form of wings. And with a powerful push of his blood-red wings, the former mercenary took off upward like a rocket towards the now rapidly falling yellow blur. And as he got closer and closer, he began to notice why the yellow blur had looked so familiar and also why he'd been SLIGHTLY tempted to just let her continue falling to her supposed death... With a sigh of annoyance, Jaune flew towards the falling girl an accelerated speed before heroically catching her in his muscular arms. To which she promptly threw her arms around his neck and smirked at him.

"Thanks for the save, Noodle Boy, and sorry for DROPPING in." said Yang, smiling as Jaune sighed in annoyance. "I guess you could say I'm really FALLING for you, huh?"

"I swear, Xiao Long, I WILL drop you." said Jaune, as he and Yang slowly made their descent back towards the mess hall's destroyed roof.

As the two of them floated down through the same hole where Yang had been launched through, the mes hall, which was once destroyed was now slowly being fixed by Glynda's telekinetic semblance and soon enough the mess hall was now as good as new. But considering the glare that Glynda was now giving them all, sans Jaune, it was safe to assume that their punishment would be FAR worse that what his older sisters had to deal with. And as Jaune's semblance deactivated and he released Yang from his hold, he looked back to see that all four members of Team RNBW was now literally covered in strangely colored substances while Ruby and Pyrrha remaind unharmed by what was most likely an all-out food war.

In short, everything was fucked.

And so after Glynda thoroughly subdued everyone, minus Jaune, with her covenant "Goodwitch Glare" the rest of the day went off about as normally as to be expected.

That is until literally SEVERAL high-class Atlesian Military fighter ships came soaring overhead. And while many of the students were busy being awestruck by the sight of advanced military technology, all Jaune could do was sigh as he felt his scroll vibrate as a another message from Ozpin called him back to the office under guise of yet another "grooming" of the future headmaster of Beacon.

As Jaune disembarked from the evelator, he quickly found himself in the presence of a third party as his eyes fell upon General James Ironwood. And even as Glynda moves past him to enter the elevator he still kept his eyes trained on the military man. It wasn't until he saw Ozpin gesturing him forward that he began to move towards the two men.

"Ah, it appears our guest has arrived." said Ozpin, smiling at Jaune as he made his way towards the two.

"You must the infamous Morito Hayama, correct?" asked General Ironwood when Jaune's expression shifted into seriousness as his form shifted before reappearing behind the General with the barrel of his rifle aimed directly at his head, leaving the General in a state of shock and awe over such an action. Even Ozpin seemed surprised before regaining his composure enough to stop Jaune from putting a bullet in his colleague's skull.

"Calm yourself, Mr. Hayam." instructed Ozpin, causing Jaune to turn his heated glare onto him instead of General Ironwood. "James is a close friend and ally, he is already well aware of your true identity and has been sworn to secrecy."

"I don't believe I ever gave you permission to tell others about my identity, did I Ozpin?" asked Jaune, keeping his rifle trained on General Ironwood's head while maintaining his heated glare on the headmaster.

"You are right to be upset, Mr. Hayama." General Ironwood interjected when he felt the barrel of Jaune's rifle nudge the back of his head.

"Oh, I'm FAR beyond upset." said Jaune.

"But you can rest assure that your secret as well as any information spoken in this room will be kept safe." said General Ironwood, inwardly sighing with relief as he felt the barrel pull away from his head.

"And why should I trust anything you say, General?" asked Jaune.

"Because much like you, I, too, have a score to settle with Ms. Hibachi. And I refuse to let her drag anymore innocent lives into her games." said General Ironwood as he clenched his fist tightly together with a snarl before somehow finding the willpower to calm himself. "But more than that, you may consider my secrecy a just reward to a man who singlehanded year brought the end the Faunus Slave Trade in northern Sanus."

"And let me guess, a little bird told you that?" asked Jaune, glaring as he imagined Qrow's drunken face.

"No, in this case, I was informed by, as you so playfully called, a frigid crybaby." said General Ironwood, smiling as Jaune's eyes widened at the familiar nickname before his lips began to spread into a smirk.

"Guess she took my advice, huh?" he asked with a smile as he pulled his weapon away from General Ironwood. "Good thing too, I was REALLY close to just beating her into a pulp for being such an idiot."

"Hmm, yes, she tends to be a handful but I wouldn't have anyone else as my right hand." said General Ironwood, smiling as Jaune holstered his rifle.

"Ah, see? We're all allies in these troublesome times." said Ozpin before shutting his mouth at the sight of Jaune's glare.

"Don't test me, Ozpin." commanded Jaune before sighing as he released his anger for the headmaster. "Now, what is it that you wanted to speak with me about?"

"Please, take a seat, Mr. Hayama." said Ozpin, gesturing towards the chair sitting in front of his desk. "We have MUCH to discuss."


End file.
